Pulling Tides
by Lainielove7
Summary: An entire book-written exactly like a novel-off of Breaking Dawn of the Twilight series. Bella and Edward's daughter is forced to forget her past. Will the secrets of her family tear them apart? Please R&R-it is well written and worth your time!
1. Preface

**Please note:**

**I do not own any characters from Twilight! **

**There are a few characters of my own creation in this book, but other than that, I own nothing!**

**Also note: In chapter one, I use a poem that I found online as a creation of Edward. I have been meaning to write my own, so please do not get angry that I did not use my own (I'm not claiming it as my own, thus do not see the problem with using it until I write one!)**

**Poem by: Francesca Milton**

**I wrote this book because although I loved the ending of Breaking Dawn, I felt as if there was more of a story to be told (What happens with the Volturi now that they know the power the Cullens hold? What happens with Renesmee and Jacob?) I developed the concept just like a real novel, so I think you will greatly enjoy it! It is in the editing process right now, so there may be some minor errors. If so, please comment with the chapter number!**

**Okay, without further ado, here's Pulling Tides. Enjoy! **

**Preface**

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I grasped the object tightly in my hand, knowing that it was not going to hurt me. It could not hurt me, for I was innocent. But it _was_ going to hurt every single one of them, and I didn't care—they had lied to me, and now they were going to pay the price.

I began to run, the booming of thunder echoing in my ears as I headed toward a storm of my own.


	2. Chapter One

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"**You can close your eyes to the things you do not want to see, but you cannot close your heart to the things you do not want to feel."**

**-Anonymous**

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**Chapter One**

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**Bella**

His soft whispering in my ear made me wonder if I was dreaming, although I knew that even if I could dream, it would never be this perfect. With my head in his lap, I looked up at his face and sighed; he was so beautiful, so flawless. Even after three blissful years of marriage, I still couldn't believe that he was mine.

"What is it?" he asked, smiling down at me like an angel from heaven.

"I love you," I whispered, as if that was the only explanation he would ever need. And it was.

My mind turned to some of his physical attributes that made the words I had just spoken absolutely genuine. I inhaled his sweet scent, studied his perfect eyes, the way his high cheekbones shaped his face, the color of his slightly messy yet somehow still immaculate hair. I watched a small smile appear at the corners of his mouth as he gazed down at me. His jaw was tight, practically clenched as always. I observed his muscles, which to the average person made it seem as if he went to the gym regularly. He was perfect.

But he hadn't always been this way. I began picturing what he might have looked like before he was transformed into this vision of perfection. However, in my mind's eye, he was exactly the same—slightly antiquated, yet still flawless. I refused to believe that this man was ever a weak, imprudent human.

He softly bit my nose, laughing quietly as he pulled away.

"Hey, you—there's no blood in there," I teased, closing my eyes before taking yet another deep inhaling breath, letting his unique aroma slowly fill me just as his love had for the past three years.

I recalled a few years ago, when I would come home from school after braving a cruel winter storm. As I entered the house, I would immediately run to the kitchen where a steaming cup of hot chocolate would be waiting for me—the only thing that Charlie knew how to make. I would drink it quickly; every drop that drained down my throat had caused a feeling of warmth to spread through my body, filling every crevice with the delicious treat. And not only did it satisfy me at that moment, it stayed with me for hours. That was the only comparison to Edward's love that I could think of. It warmed me to the tips of my toes and never left me with an empty feeling—just one drop of his devotion stayed with me forever.

"I love you too," he responded softly, bending his head down to kiss me.

I had kissed him at least a thousand times in my life, but even as a vampire, the touch of our lips sent chills down my spine. I sat up, placing my hand into his while I gracefully moved toward him. And then my lips were magnetized to his once more as he wrapped his arms around me, pulling me even closer.

People always said that passion in a marriage faded after awhile—that it wasn't always going to be that love-at-first-sight feeling that movies and books portrayed. But for Edward and me it was different; our passion for each other never weakened. If it had changed at all, it only elevated as we matured. Every time I kissed him, the same feelings of love and devotion came flooding back to me as when we had kissed for the first time. During the day, every moment of the previous passionate night never faded from my memory, and I impatiently anticipated the setting of the sun so that it could happen all over again.

We both stopped when we heard a pair of little feet stomping out of bed. Edward frowned as a fatherly-disapproval quickly filled his twinkling eyes. "She's up early."

"No, we're up late." I attempted to escape from his loving grasp, but he teased me by holding me tighter, quickly becoming tenacious. "Honey, we need to get dressed," I giggled as I felt the touch of his lips on the hallow at the base of my neck, followed by the soft, caressing feeling of his nose as it persuaded me to stay in bed with him.

"So you say," he mumbled. "I, on the other hand, suggest that we stay here all day."

I smiled, pretending to ponder this notion. "Okay that's fine. We won't take our tests today and then we won't go to college. That sounds pretty good to me."

He quickly held up his hands, releasing me from a prison I had no true desire to escape from. "Oh no, you're not getting out of them that easily."

I shrugged with apathy. "It was worth a shot. Anyway, it's just a waste of our time. I still don't think faking that we've been home schooled for the past four years will work."

His smile suddenly fell, the amusement in his eyes departing with it. "Well, we just have to hope it does. We can't go to Dartmouth claiming that we graduated from high school three years ago—we'll appear far too young."

"I know," I agreed, but with reluctance. "I just wish we didn't have to go at all. I would rather spend all day with you and Nessie. I'm not ready to go to college."

That beautiful smile returned once more as he delicately grazed my cheek with his hand. "Bella, you promised that we would find a school to go to together. You've delayed for three years now—I believe you're ready."

"I guess," I mumbled before I slid out of his lap and glided over to the enormous closet that Alice had built for us. After we had moved in three years ago, I discovered that it was bigger than all of the rooms in our cozy little cottage combined. I always rolled my eyes when I thought of this; Alice was known to go overboard with anything that dealt with fashionable clothes or parties, which just so happened to be my two least favorite things in the entire world.

I grabbed a pair of jeans and a tee shirt for both Edward and me before walking back to the bed where I leaned down to kiss him; I could feel the smile on his face as our lips touched.

"You're wonderful," he told me with a sigh.

I knew that if I could, I would be blushing right now. "You should talk."

"Daddy! Mommy!" a beautiful, high-pitched voice called from downstairs.

That voice—that wonderful sound that somehow made the heart that did not exist within my body sing. I pictured her standing in her room, rolling her teddy bear pajamas well past her knee so that she would be able to skip into the hallway without hindrance. Her brown hair would fall into her face, which would mean that she needed to reach a delicate, pale hand out to push it aside.

She was the light of our lives, and she knew it. Her smile brightened our day; her tears saddened us. We loved her, we protected her, we made her—and she would forever be ours.

"Breakfast time," I reminded Edward. "Do you want to go hunting?"

His dark brows furrowed as he concentrated on the mind of our little girl. "Might as well. Right now she's thinking about how she doesn't want to eat human food."

"Well, I guess I don't blame her. That stuff _is_ horrible." Although I was laughing lightly, realization was slowly sinking in—had it only been three years ago when the sound of milk being poured into a bowl of cereal in the morning made my mouth water?

Edward had been thinking the same, using the mind that seemed to work in sync with my own. "I seem to recall a time not too long ago when you used to enjoy it!"

I groaned as I stuck my tongue out in disgust. "I'm trying to forget. How could I have been that foolish?"

We were both still laughing as we walked hand-in-hand down the hall into the kitchen; this was the pattern of our day, usually repetitive but for some reason never dull.

"Good morning," Edward said to Renesmee.

She beamed at him, her perfect teeth gleaming. Every day she grew more and more beautiful; her features completely accented her kind and caring personality. I studied her face, which still highly resembled her father's, but was now beginning to carry my traits. One of the most obvious was her chocolate brown eyes, still exact replicas of how mine once were.

"Did you sleep well, darling?" I asked after kissing the top of her head.

A wave of sadness rushed through her face before she expelled a soft sigh—a sound that could break any mother's heart, even if she didn't have a heart to break.

"Oh," Edward responded softly, pulling her into a tight hug. "It's okay, honey."

"It was so scary," she whispered, holding her father tighter as she recalled whatever was upsetting her.

I extended a hand and tapped my husband on the shoulder impatiently. "Not everyone's a mind reader," I reminded him when his eyes met mine.

But before he offered an explanation, he bent down and placed a kiss on the top of our daughter's head. This was another thing that I loved about Edward: he was such an amazing father.

"Nessie had a nightmare," he finally told me.

Visions of the horrible nightmares that I used to have while I was human spun through my head. Although they were a little fuzzy, they remained one of the few parts of my human life that was most apparent in my mind—that was the power of their impact on me. "Oh, Nessie," I said to Renesmee, whose body was now trembling. "Was it terrible?"

Renesmee walked over to me and placed her small, perfect hands atop my head, using her special gift to literally show me the terrible dream that she'd had. In it was the Volturi, the unofficial "royal family" to vampires around the world. Being the leaders of our world, they sought justice for vampires who broke any of the few laws they demanded be followed.

I shuddered; in Renesmee's mind, they appeared even more terrifying than the last time we had seen them, about three years ago. At that time, they had come to punish the members of my family for supposedly creating an "immortal child," an infant or toddler who had been turned into a vampire—justifiably illegal in the eyes of the Volturi. They had believed Renesmee to be one of these forbidden children, never before hearing of a half-bred baby that survived the violence that occurred during birth. Luckily, everything had worked out fine in the end, except for the fact that my daughter was now having horrendous nightmares.

"Don't think about them anymore, Nessie," I comforted. "They're gone and you're safe."

"I guess," she mumbled without conviction.

Edward glanced at me with eyes filled deep with fatherly concern, and I nodded for him say something.

"She's right, Nessie. They're gone and they shouldn't be coming back," he finally told her after a moment of quick contemplation.

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, she spun around with her eyes wider than I had ever seen them. "_Shouldn't_ be?"

"They're _not_ coming back," I snapped forcefully, shooting an angry look at Edward.

"Now, Bella…" he started.

"They're _not_ coming back," I repeated. I was aware that he didn't want to lie to her, but I had no desire for her to be scared either. Especially after having a nightmare. He didn't remember what dreams such as that were like, when you spent the whole day trying to get the horrible pictures out of your head just to have them forced back in when you went to bed.

Edward sighed as he knelt down to her level, taking her beautiful face into his hands. "Nessie, darling, listen to me," he said firmly, but lovingly. "Your mother and I love you very much. Everything's going to be alright. You have to trust me."

She nodded, believing the reliance in her father's voice. "Okay, Daddy," she said in a soft whisper. "May we go eat now?"

"Of course. We will be out in one minute—just wait outside for us please," Edward ordered gently.

She nodded again before obediently scurrying out of the room.

I reluctantly turned to Edward who, as I suspected, was glaring at me with familiar fuming eyes—the same eyes he used to look at me with almost four years previous, when I would go against his wishes to sneak off to LaPush in order to visit the werewolves.

"She's not listening outside, right?" I asked him.

As he shook his head, his intensity remained unwavering.

"I'm sorry." I offered the apology like a gift, hoping that he would accept it soon. I hated fighting with him—especially when I knew that he was correct. When I received no acknowledgment, I continued with a weak explanation. "I just don't want her to be scared."

The corners of his mouth now formed a frown as he crossed his arms in front of his chest. "Lying to her is not the answer, Bella."

"I know. But maybe Alice was wrong. Maybe they aren't coming back."

"Bella..." he started.

"I know, I know, she's never wrong. But they could change their minds! Then the vision would change."

"Honey, please be reasonable; they just want to check up on Renesmee. As I told her, everything is going to be alright. You have to trust me."

Those five words—he always used them for the sole purpose of making his wife and daughter feel better. And we _always_ accepted them. There was just something about a promise from Edward Cullen that made you feel as if it could never be broken. So once again, I welcomed it with a nod.

"Does Alice know when it's going to be?"

He shook his head. "She only knows that it is going to be soon."

"I just want to get it over with already."

He held out his arms, which I immediately fell into. As he hugged me tightly, he rocked our bodies back and forth; the soothing motion almost made me forget about our problem—almost. "I know. Me too," he said, pulling away a little bit in order to kiss my forehead.

"Mommy, Daddy, hurry up!" we heard a now-happy Renesmee giggle from outside.

"One minute, Ness!" Edward responded without breaking his amatory gaze.

"But can we please wait a few days before we tell her?" I begged. "She _just_ had that nightmare…"

"Of course, Bella," he whispered.

I placed my hand into his own and had begun walking toward the door when he suddenly came to a halt. Glancing at me and smiling crookedly, his gleaming eyes were full of both mischief and excitement.

"Edward, we have an impatient little girl waiting outside for us," I warned lovingly, tugging on his hand.

"She can wait. There's something on the table for you. I want you to read it before we leave. I'll meet you outside."

"Okay…" I said, confused. "What is it?"

My question was ignored as he hastily made his way out the door without turning back to look at me. And then, something caught my eye—a white envelope, which was laying in plain view. He must have discreetly placed it there only a few moments ago; there was no way that I had simply neglected to notice it. Immediately recognizing the outside handwriting as Edward's impeccable script, I opened the seal carefully, knowing that building the anticipation would make it more meaningful. Finally, I pulled out the folded letter and began reading.

My darling Bella,

My love, I have tried with all my being  
to grasp a form comparable to thine own,  
but nothing seems worthy;

I know now why Shakespeare could not  
compare his love to a summer's day.  
It would be a crime to denounce the beauty  
of such a creature as thee,  
to simply cast away the precision  
God had placed in forging you.

Each facet of your being  
whether it physical or spiritual  
is an ensnarement  
from which there is no release.  
But I do not wish release.  
I wish to stay entrapped forever.  
With you for all eternity.  
Our hearts, always as one.

I wish you the best of luck on your tests this afternoon, my darling.

I love you,

Now and forever more,

Edward

After the final word, the most important of them all, was read, I began moving my eyes down the page once more. I had read it a total of seven times before I remembered that Renesmee and Edward were waiting outside for me. I carefully placed the letter back into the envelope before walking out the door, where at the sound of my coming, Edward turned around just in time for me to throw my arms around him.

"I'm glad you liked it," Edward chuckled, although it seemed as if I was practically crushing him to the point where he would not be able to breathe.

"Oh, Edward, it was beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. Thank you so much."

He nodded before taking me into his arms to kiss me with the same passion that was in his letter. I breathed in the moment and wished that our love for each other would never lessen even the slightest bit. We then went to join Renesmee, who was cavorting in circles, merrily and child-like.

Edward and I both held one of Renesmee's hands as we walked into the forest to hunt. Usually, Renesmee, who had to eat only once a day, would hunt when we hunted—the rest of the time, we made her eat human food. Both of us were pleased that hunting had quickly become one of Renesmee's best skills. Although her human side (and the fact that she was my daughter) made her stumble, amazingly she did so with grace. Every time she tripped, she would quickly catch herself and twirl into what reminded me of a ballet move. Then, she would giggle and look over at her father. I suspected he had told her stories of when I had hurt myself while I was human. Admitting that I had been pretty clumsy, all I could do was laugh as well.

Edward and Renesmee made a game out of hunting because she easily grew bored and distracted. They both had to hold perfectly still and wait for the first animal to pass them. Then, Edward would count to three, and they would take off running. Even though he was a lot faster than she, he acted as if he was struggling to keep up. She knew that he was slowing down for her and would laugh and speed up, realizing that her father would always let her win. They would share what they had caught and would repeat it until Renesmee was full.

I heard Edward say "three" before they took off through the scattered trees. Watching them until they were out of sight, I ran to find myself something to eat, for I hadn't realized how hungry I was until I stepped into the forest. My throat burned with thirst, as it always did when I went a couple of weeks without eating. Although the thirst was starting to become less noticeable to me, it still burned intensely. I knew the unbearable hunger of a newborn vampire had worn off two years ago, although I also realized that I hadn't been much of a newborn vampire anyway. I'd had too much self control, too much ability to go hungry to really be classified as a true newborn. This still amazed Jasper, who always had trouble controlling himself despite the fact that he had been a vampire for many years.

With a slight wince, I suddenly remembered the promise I had made to Charlie—that he could have Renesmee for the entire day due to the fact that he hadn't had much time to spend with her lately. She was growing quickly, which, of course, was normal for a half-vampire, half-humans. Thus, Charlie justifiably felt as if he was missing her entire life. I had agreed with him and gave him my word that he could spend the entire day with her.

Now I regretted my promise; if she was worried about the Volturi, I wanted to be near to speak with her about them. However, despite my protective nature, I knew that getting out of the house was exactly what she needed to clear her mind. Besides, Edward and I were going to be gone most of the day, making it convenient for her to be with her grandfather. I hesitantly pulled out my cell phone.

"Hello?"

The sound was a female voice; Sue Clearwater's voice. I knew that my father was happy with her, but it was still a hard concept to accept; my dad, Charlie Swan, with a woman. As far as I knew, he hadn't dated since he and my mother split up. And I had a feeling that he was going to propose to her soon, something I was convinced that Alice knew about but was withholding.

"Hi, Sue!" I greeted cheerfully. And I was cheerful; I truly desired for my father to be happy. When I thought about it, they were perfect for each other. Both were caught in worlds they knew nothing about—my father in the vampire world with my new family and me and Sue in the world of the werewolves' with her children, Leah and Seth, and their corresponding pack.

"Oh, Bella, darling how are you?" she asked, truly intent on hearing the answer.

"Wonderful, thank you. How are you?"

"Great thanks. I was just making breakfast for your father. Honestly, I don't know what he did before us—he can barely boil water."

I laughed at this, feeling a hint of relief. Before I was married, I had been worried what he would do without my cooking which he had gotten used to since I moved in with him. Luckily, Sue had discovered how helpless he was and now made him three meals a day, which saved him from eating at the diner every night.

"I'm so glad you're there to feed him, Sue. I hope he appreciates you."

"Oh trust me, I make him clean every dish when dinner is done as a token of his gratitude," she teased before pulling the phone away from her mouth to whisper "It's Bella" to my father. Charlie's chair squeaked as he stood up to take the receiver from her. I listened to the unmistakable sound of a kiss before he spoke to me, and I wrinkled my nose a bit at this, although I didn't know what about an innocent kiss made me so upset.

But the truth was, I had never thought of him to have gotten over my mother. It was sort of the only bond we had—her having been married to him and having me. It seemed that when she was completely out of the picture by being theoretically replaced by another woman, we had nothing in common anymore.

Thoughts of our disintegrating relationship were pushed aside as his cheerful voice greeted me. "Bells! How are you?"

"I'm well, thanks," I replied. "I hear you are well-fed."

He laughed heartily. "Oh yes, Sue is a great cook. I think you may have some competition."

"Dad, I haven't cooked for you in three years. Tell her she can have the job permanently."

I heard Sue's own light chuckling in the background as she stirred something on the stove.

"Do I still get Nessie for the day today?" he asked hesitantly, apparently worried that I had changed my mind, which I supposed I was prone to do with him.

"Yes, Dad, that's why I'm calling. She's hunt…I mean, eating breakfast right now, and then we'll drop her off. Do you have anything planned?"

"I thought Sue and I would take her to the movies and then roller skating."

"She'll love that. She misses you."

"And I miss her. And you; I haven't seen you in awhile, Bella. Will you visit when you pick her up?"

I smiled, pleased by the fact that my father missed me so much. "Sure, Dad. We'll stay for a little while."

"Good. Well, I have to eat now. I'll see you soon?"

"Yes, see you soon."

As I hung up, I saw the silhouettes of my husband and daughter come over the clearing. "Who was that?" he asked as he neared me, holding Renesmee's hand in his. She was smiling proudly, which told me that she had once again won the matches against her father.

"Charlie. Nessie's going to spend the day with him and Sue today."

"Really? The whole day?" Renesmee's eyes were filled with a joyful excitement that only she could produce. I lived for moments when she looked exactly like this, pleased by the simple things in life just as I was.

"Yes, sweetheart," I told her. "I figured you would be excited."

"Can we go _now_?" she begged with her hands clasped together. Her brown eyes were once again pleading in a way that she knew neither of her parents could resist.

I began nodding, but stopped when I noticed that Edward was frowning at me. "You haven't eaten yet," he apprised.

At this correct assessment, my throat immediately started burning with unbearable thirst. "Oh yeah, I guess I forgot."

He rolled his eyes as he slowly shook his head, smiling in amusement. "You go eat. I'll take Nessie home to get dressed and then we'll leave." Without waiting for a response from me, he picked her up and carried her to the house, tickling her the entire way. I could hear her carefree giggles echoing off the trees as I ran to find something to eat.

It still amazed me that I was able to hunt so naturally, as if I had been doing so my whole life. I remembered what Edward had said to me during my first hunt: "Don't think about it. Just use your instincts." I had listened to him and was amazed at what I could do when I tuned into my senses. I could hear the animals walking, almost marching, along the forest floor. The cadence of the sound was hypnotic. I could smell the warm blood, the sweet taste I longed to have running down my throat. My fingers tingled as my throat burned, a natural sign of hunger. I felt instinct take over, which turned me into a completely different person—a different person who would be hard to control. Someone who seemed to be frozen in a crouching position, low to the ground as she waited for the perfect opportunity to chase helpless prey. My eyes widened and became even clearer.

I stopped breathing, knowing that even the smallest sound could give me away. Suddenly, the sound of a steady heart beat hit my ears. My mouth started watering as it grew closer, and I waited patiently as the thumping escalated. Finally I saw the source—a doe, sniffing the forest floor for food. Although I wouldn't normally attack a doe due to the fact that she could be a mother, my ravenous hunger convinced me that I did not have time to pick and choose what I ate. I sprang from my hiding spot and quicker than her instinct told her to run, snapped her neck. I drank her sweet blood quickly, still craving more. After repeating this process with a few rabbits, I was as full as I would ever be by solely relying on animals to sustain myself. I looked down at my shirt—the few tiny spots of blood proved my improvement. Even after three years of practice, I was nowhere near as perfect as Edward and his family at hunting cleanly.

I ran back to the cottage at full speed to change my clothes. As I entered the house, I almost sped right past Alice, who was standing near the doorway holding clothes; a dress and a pair of high heels.

An automatic groan rang through my throat. "No way. _No way_, I am not wearing that," I said firmly.

"Come on, Bella! What's the point of having a mall for a closet if all you wear are tee-shirts and jeans?"

She extended the clothes out to me, which I immediately pushed back toward her with a scowl. "Because Edward and I are taking our application tests for Dartmouth today, and I'm not doing it in a dress and heels."

"But you'll look amazing in this. Trust me…" she said with pleading eyes which, like Renesmee's, were hard to resist.

"Fine," I snapped, snatching the clothes from her hands to take them to my room. I didn't have to turn around to know that Alice was smiling from head to toe.

I quickly pulled the dress over my shoulders and gasped aloud as I stared at my reflection in the mirror; I actually loved it. Alice had picked out a short, casual red dress and matching heels that complimented me well. I did a small twirl, admiring myself in the mirror, something I had probably done three times in my entire life.

"Told you so!" Alice called from the other room.

"Fine, you win. This looks really good," I admitted, beaming at my reflection.

After I was done, I stepped out of my room and almost ran into Edward, who was coming down the hall. I smiled shyly at him and looked down at my outfit, unsure of how he would react.

It was silent for a moment as his eyes analyzed every inch of me. I gave him a questioning look, wondering why it was taking him so long to answer. I suddenly felt embarrassed, regretting my decision—apparently I was not meant to wear things such as this. I shifted uncomfortably, wishing he would break the silence. "Wow," he finally said, but he barely got the word out due to the fact that he had not taken a breath. "Wow," he repeated.

I couldn't help but beam at his reaction. "It was Alice's idea," I explained.

"Thank you, Alice," he mumbled, placing a gentle hand on the small of my back.

Alice's sharp ears had apparently heard what he'd said. "You're welcome Edward! See, Bella, Edward likes when you dress like that!"

Edward chuckled as he kissed my hands, neck, and cheeks, stopping before he got to my lips. "You look absolutely stunning, my love," he whispered, right before he pressed his mouth to mine.

The giggling of my little girl hit my ears as she entered the room, and I looked up from my entrancement with my husband to give her a smile. It was then that I noticed the new outfit she was wearing.

"Renesmee, where did you get those clothes?"

"From me!" Alice exclaimed, appearing around the corner. "Renesmee took the outfit I gave her without complaining. And look how absolutely adorable she looks!"

Renesmee spun around gracefully, showing off her new dress, which was pale pink with soft white stripes. I had to admit, Alice was very talented in the fashion department and somehow made my beautiful Renesmee even more stunning.

"You look wonderful, honey," I told my daughter. Then, I turned to my sister-in-law, who was gawking over her niece's new clothes. "Alice, you're turning my baby into a fashion zombie like you."

"A mini Alice," Edward groaned. "Just what the world needs."

Renesmee immediately ran to her aunt's side with a beaming smile. "I _love_ being like Auntie Alice," she defended loyally.

Alice laughed, kissing the top of Renesmee's head. "Good girl. Don't listen to them. They have absolutely _no_ fashion sense." She then turned back to Edward and me, her eyes dancing. "So, I hear that Nessie is spending the day with Charlie and Sue."

"Yes. They're taking her to the movies." I looked toward Edward, who was still looking at my outfit with a boyish grin apparently permanently plastered on his face. "Speaking of which," I said sternly, wishing he would stop. "We'd better get going. I told him that it would only be a few minutes."

"Oh!" Alice suddenly exclaimed. "I have to go too; I promised Jasper I would go hunting with him." She kissed each of us on the cheek and then preformed her dance-like walk out of the house.

When we looked down at Renesmee, we were met with another pair of efficacious brown eyes. "Can we go now, please?"

Edward laughed. "Oh, I don't know. I think we should stay a few more minutes and clean the house. We could wash the windows, sweep the floor…" His topaz eyes sparkled at his daughter.

"Daddy!" our daughter giggled.

"Edward, stop teasing her," I scolded lovingly.

He smiled, taking each of our hands as we walked to the car. We arrived at Charlie's house only a few minutes later, due to Edward's usual speeding. As soon as the car stopped, Renesmee skipped joyfully to the door. Edward quickly walked to my side of the car to open my door, something he had done since the first time he drove me. I kissed him gently before we made our way into the house.

Renesmee was already inside, pestering Charlie about what they were going to do that day. He was shaking his head, telling her that she was simply going to have to find out when they got there.

"Hey, Dad. Hey, Sue," I said to them as I walked through the door.

"Hi, Charlie. Sue," Edward greeted.

"Hello, you two!" Sue chirped, rising to hug us both.

Charlie smiled. "Your lovely daughter was just bothering me about my plans. But it's a _surprise_." He began tickling her, causing her to roll on the couch, shrieking with laughter that echoed off the walls and caused everyone to grin.

"Be good," Edward told our giggling daughter, kissing the top of her head with his cold lips.

"I will, Daddy," Renesmee promised.

"We love you," I said, also kissing her.

"Love you too."

The second we had settled into the car, Edward leaned over and kissed me. As he pulled away, I watched as his golden eyes danced with the excitement of the act. "We have a great daughter."

"Of course we do. The perfect couple needs the perfect daughter." I leaned in to kiss him again, but stopped before our lips touched. I smiled, staring into his painfully beautiful eyes.

"What?" he asked.

"I know what we can do today. How much time do we have before our tests?"

His questioning eyes looked into mine before he turned to the clock. "About two hours."

"Perfect."

He tilted his head, his eyes now dancing the way they did only when he was excited. "What are you planning?"

"You'll see. Let me drive." I ran around his new, shiny black Volvo as he reluctantly climbed into the passenger's seat.

"Isabella Marie Cullen, where are we going?" he demanded with a laugh.

I pursed my lips, indicating that I was not going to tell him. He lay back in his seat as he sighed with frustration. In order to cause him to relax, I took his left hand and lovingly kissed the top of his gold wedding band.

"If only I could read your mind…" His playful grin was enticing—I suddenly became extremely pleased with myself for finally taking him where we were about to go.

"These are the times that I'm grateful I'm a shield," I told him with a teasing smile.

"You're grateful that you're a shield all the time," he corrected dully.

I laughed. "Do you blame me? I mean, do you realize how frustrating it is to everyone else that they can never keep a secret from you? Especially Alice —I still can't believe that before our wedding, she kept herself from picturing me in my dress around you."

"_That_ was annoying as well."

I quickly studied his eyes for traces of anger; they were alit with intensity, but in a humorous manner. He appeared to be relishing in the suspense.

The ride lasted for about forty-five minutes, until we arrived at a large wooded area. I glanced over toward Edward; the curious expression that was still plastered on his face told me that he remained clueless. The second the car stopped, he was out the door and at the driver's side to help me out with a loving hand. I smiled at his chivalry, something that was prevalent even while he was annoyed.

A frown formed on his face as he took a step forward, taking in his surroundings with darting eyes. "Where are we?"

"You'll see. Let's run." I grabbed his hand, and we took off down the sinuous path before us. The feeling of ecstasy that running produced still amazed me. I felt solid, as if nothing could hurt me. While each second of continuous motion should have brought weakness, it only made me stronger. I felt endurance flood through me, filling the veins I theoretically did not have. Edward's soft, perfect breath sounded with every step we took. I glanced over at him as he raised his eyebrow, still attempting to figure out where we were going.

Finally, we reached the spot. After we both stopped, I walked up behind him, wrapping both of my hands around his perfect eyes. I could feel his smile.

"Now Edward, Alice found this a few days ago. She's been trying really hard not to think about it around you…"

"Again? I didn't even notice this time," he groaned.

"She wanted me to be the one to show it to you. Are you ready?"

"Yes," he replied impatiently.

"Are you sure?"

He gently pulled my hands away from his eyes and looked around, trying to spot what I wanted to show him. He froze when he finally noticed it; a small, aged tombstone with the words 'Edward Anthony Mason II, 1836-1874,' engraved on the weathered front.

"I'm assuming he's your grandfather." I took in the appearance of his face—it was perfectly emotionless, almost dead-looking. Maybe this hadn't been the best idea; I had pictured him picking me up and swinging me around, giving me a passionate kiss before thanking me with sincere gratitude. I had pictured him explaining that he had been looking for the memorial for ages, and thanks to Alice and me, he could finally see it.

After studying his blank expression further, I began to feel extremely guilty—of course he would get upset; it was his damn grandfather's grave. I supposed that since Alice was so excited about showing him, I hadn't thought about how the sight would affect him.

"Edward, I…" I started, but stopped when he held out a steady marble hand.

He solemnly walked forward and fell on his knees in front of the grave. For an agonizing three minutes, he remained motionless, staring at it with such intensity, it appeared as if he was expecting his grandfather to rise from the dead. I felt awful—why had I done this to him? Why had I brought up an apparently painful or distressing memory? Was I a horrible wife for bringing him here? I knew the answer was yes; I was a horrible wife. He had written me a beautiful poem, and I had brought him to his grandfather's grave.

"Thank you," was all he said, in his ordinary angelic voice. His eyes were still affixed on the grave.

I stayed silent, knowing that he was not grateful toward me. He must have been thanking his deceased grandfather for something—there was no way he was thanking me for causing him this much pain. His sweet voice interrupted my thoughts once again.

"Bella, did you hear me? I said thank you."

"Edward, I am so sorry. I didn't know it would make you this upset," I whispered ruefully.

Perfect eyes filled with pain and sorrow tore my heart apart as he turned around.

"No," he said firmly. And then, before I knew it, I was being held close in comforting arms that I did not deserve. "Thank you. I've been wanting to search for this. I knew it was around here, but I was never brave enough to look."

"Oh," I whispered, weakly, almost wishing that it was me in the grave instead of his grandfather. I couldn't believe that I had done this to him. I couldn't believe that I had made him this upset. My heart longed for him to express how angry he was with me instead of trying to make me feel better; he should know that bestowing his fury was exactly what was called for in this situation.

His once expressionless mouth suddenly turned into a frown. He stepped closer to me, staring deep into my eyes. "You don't believe me."

I glanced away, willing but unable to look at his pain. "You're upset; I understand that. You don't have to try to make me feel better. I shouldn't have brought you here. I'm _so_ sorry, Edward."

I felt his flawless hands graze my cheek, gently pulling my face up to look at his. His expression had changed—his eyes were happy again, full of joy. "Don't say that, Bella. I truly mean it. Thank you for showing me this. I love you."

"I love you too," I whispered, barley able to choke out the words. I apparently didn't love him as much as he loved me—he forgave me so easily after what I had done.

As I was kissed with passion, sadness filled me—although he had somehow gotten rid of the pain in his eyes, I could taste it in his kiss. Sorrow, pain, and regret—I could taste them all.

He pulled me closer, and I clung to him tightly in a silent promise: as long as I lived, I would never, _ever_ hurt him again. No matter how small, how insignificant, I would never again be the cause of the pained expression that I had witnessed only moments before on my beloved husband's face.


	3. Chapter Two

**Chapter Two**

‡

**Bella**

"They're here," Edward practically sang, waving a pair of envelopes in front of my face.

I groaned obnoxiously at the sight of them—our Dartmouth acceptance or rejection letters. Actually, Edward's guaranteed acceptance letter and my guaranteed rejection letter. I still couldn't believe that he actually thought money was going to get me into one of the most prestigious schools in the country. They might have believed us to be home schooled, but I wasn't sure if they were going to let me into the school simply because my husband made a donation; Edward hadn't even bothered to change my grades. I mean, I was smart in high school, but I inevitably got a few B's because time that should have been spent studying had been used otherwise—dealing with depression after Edward left, running to Italy to save his life, and being hunted by a blood thirsty vampire, just to name a few.

He laughed softly as he handed me my fate with a casually extended arm. Throwing my head back with another groan, I wished that they would have delayed sending them out for a few more weeks. I needed more time to wrap my mind around the fact that after three years of planning to go to Dartmouth, we were finally going to discover if I had been accepted or not. I looked into Edward's eyes, unsurprisingly alit with anticipation—he had been looking forward to this day almost as much as I had been dreading it. I knew that I would hardly be able to bear the look of disappointment on his face when I didn't get in; so what I needed to do was stall.

In one swift movement, I had my arms wrapped around him, my lips pertinently pressed to his. But to my dismay, it was completely ineffectual—he lovingly but forcefully pulled away from me, shaking his head slowly. "You're stalling," he correctly accused.

I let out a sigh as I stared at the dreaded envelope, suddenly wishing that my power was to make things disappear. "You first," I finally said.

He nodded with reluctance before promptly tearing it open. I watched his eyes dance back and forth, scanning the page for only a few seconds before giving an apathetic shrug. "I got in."

"Congratulations, honey!" I exclaimed dramatically, making fun of his unenthusiastic reaction.

"Your turn," he reminded gently.

Teasingly, I paused, amused by how he was handling this. "You're more excited than I am."

As he swiftly reached out in an attempt to snatch the letter from my hands, I put my quick reflezes to good use. I clung to the envelope tightly as my head shook in loving disapproval. "Patience, Edward," I giggled.

He closed his eyes, bringing both hands to his temples and slowly rubbed them in frustration. "Just open it, Bella."

I nodded, realizing an anticipating Edward was not one to be teased. I quickly ripped open the letter and began reading aloud. "Dear Ms. Isabella Cullen; congratulations on your admission to Dartmouth University." I looked up at Edward in complete disbelief, whose grin couldn't have gotten any bigger. "It gives me great pleasure to send you this letter, and you have every reason to feel proud of the work and aspiration that led you to this moment." I ceased reading to turn to him with a smile. "Oh, yes, I should feel proud. I put so much work into trying to get into this college. Those hours and hours of studying and extracurricular activities have exhausted me beyond belief. I think I need to lie down."

He rolled his eyes at my sarcasm. "You got in, didn't you? Does it really matter _how_ you got in?"

"I can't believe it. I actually got accepted," I said quietly, pure shock mixed with excitement flooding my voice. I looked up at my husband and noticed the other envelope he held in his hands remained unopened. "What's that?"

"It's nothing, honey. Just another letter from Dartmouth."

"Let me see." His reflexes weren't as quick as mine had been when I grabbed it from him. "Dear Mr. Edward Cullen," I began reading. "I wanted to write to you personally to thank you for your generous donation to our school. Your contribution has greatly helped improve Dartmouth University. I would also like to remind you that if at any time you would like us to acknowledge your generous donation, do not hesitate to ask; nothing in the world would please me more than to publicly honor your kindness."

I paused, looking up at him in confusion. "How much money did you give them? I mean, people donate to universities all the time, and I don't think the dean takes the time to send them personal letters of gratitude."

"Don't worry about it."

"Edward…"

He gently placed a marble finger on my lips, immediately silencing me. "It was money well-spent. You're going to love Dartmouth."

I let out a deep, dramatic sigh, which caused Edward to roll his eyes again. "I won't love it when I'm failing every class," I whined, wishing he would realize my impending demise.

"As I have promised before, I will tutor you. But honestly, I don't think you're going to need it. You're brilliant."

"Sure I am," I responded with more sarcasm.

"Bella," he chuckled as he hugged me tightly and kissed the top of my head. "I'm so proud of you. Congratulations. I…" He suddenly froze, as if he had just realized something important.

Pulling away from him, I looked up at him with questioning eyes. "What is it?" I asked.

His delicate fingers were then at the side of my head as he gently brushed my hair behind my ears and leaned toward me. "There's someone here to see you," he whispered, reminding me of a young child with a secret.

"Who?"

Although his smile was small, it seemed to fill his beautiful face. "Go to the front door and see," he told me.

At this suggestion, I fled the room, reaching the door just as a knock sounded; it practically broke off its hinges due to my excitement. A shriek of delight escaped me when I saw one of my favorite sights in the entire world—Jacob's smiling face.

"Jake!" I exclaimed, immediately throwing my arms around him.

"Whoa, calm down, Bells," he laughed, picking me up off the ground as he hugged me.

"Come in! I haven't seen you in awhile! How are you?"

He stepped inside, looking around the cottage as he did every time he came over and didn't have Nessie to greet him at the door. He would never admit this to Edward and me, however. I believed he was still hesitant around both of us, not entirely sure if we completely accepted his love of Renesmee. Although it would seem strange to some that he imprinted—a werewolf's extreme version of love-at-first-sight—on her while she was only a baby, to us it was relatively normal. We could not have pick anyone better to one day marry our daughter. And I supposed, other than those of Jacob and Renesmee, our opinions were the only ones that mattered.

"I'm great," he answered as he continued his search with darting eyes. "What about you?"

"Amazing. I just got accepted at Dartmouth University!"

He quickly spun around, his eyes wide. "Really? Wow, congrats, Bells."

Edward's soft steps as he glided down hall were heard, his mood surprisingly inviting. I knew Jacob and he had been getting along better, but usually Edward was still a little hostile around him. I looked over at Jake, whose mood was mirrored. "Jacob," he said, nodding in acknowledgment.

"Hey, Edward," Jake replied.

"Did Bella tell you the good news?"

"Yeah, she did," he mumbled as he looked to the ground, gently kicking it with his bare foot which was slightly dirty from having walked around without shoes.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

He sighed, a sound that instantly filled me with sorrow—since the beginning of our friendship, I had always despised seeing him sad. "Does this mean you three are moving?"

At the sound of this reality, feelings of joy from the acceptance were instantly washed away. Even with all of the excitement, how could I have so easily forgotten about Jacob?

"Oh, Jake," I said as I placed my hand softly on his warm cheek. "Yes, it does mean we'll be moving to New Hampshire."

"Damn." His eyes retreated to the window in an attempt to hide his pain from me. However, it remained thick in the air, sustained as a horrible accusation. "I guess I knew this was gonna happen one day, but I didn't think it would be this soon."

"Is there any way you could come with us? I mean, when you think about it, there's really no need for the pack—all the vampires will be gone." The hope that poured through me at this suggestion was completely shattered when he slowly shook his head.

"We decided that even after you guys leave we need to stay in wolf-form for just a few more years. There have been too many close calls with other blood…I mean, vampires."

"Oh," I said softly. Suddenly, I didn't want to go to New Hampshire anymore. My heart longed to have things remain the way they had been, the perfect life that I had been accustomed to for the past three years.

He extended a hand to touch the tip of my chin. "Don't worry, Bells, I can visit you guys a lot. It's not like you guys will be living in Alaska; New Hampshire isn't that far."

"Okay," I nodded, comforted a bit by this; of course Jacob was going to visit. Nothing on Earth could separate him from Renesmee

Now thinking about her, I prompted my husband to go find our daughter, knowing that Jacob was probably about ready to burst from anticipating seeing her. As Edward walked down the hall toward Renesmee's room in order to wake her up from her nap, I glanced at Jake whose face was no longer full of as much sadness as he waited for his little Nessie. After a minute, she came running down the hall to be swept warmly in Jacob's outstretched arms.

"Jakey!" she giggled.

"Nessie!" He pressed a kiss to her forehead and then stood back to examine her. "Stop growing so fast, munchkin," he teased.

"Jakey, I'm supposed to grow," she explained, throwing her arms around him again. "Why haven't you been here in so long?" I heard her whisper into his ear.

"Aw, I'm sorry Ness. There's been some bad bloodsuc…" he stopped and glanced up at me with an apologetic smile. "…I mean vampires in town that we needed to take care of."

Her little eyes suddenly grew wide with fascination. "Did you catch them?"

"Of course. We _always_ catch them," he bragged matter-of-factly. "Now, since I haven't seen you in a while, I expect you to have a lot of good stories to tell me." He then sat down on the ground, so he was the same height as she.

With a grin, Nessie immediately placed her tiny hands upon his head as she showed Jake what he had missed. I saw his face light up—I could tell her loved every single minute of her stories, no matter what they were about.

Edward took my hand and led me into the family room, sitting down on the couch as he took me into his arms. "So what shall we do today?" he asked.

I cuddled closer to him. "Well, since Jake is here, I was thinking we should all go over to Carlisle and Esme's. Everyone's going to be there."

"I hadn't realized that our parents' house is the hot new party place," he teased.

I laughed softly. "Let's leave soon. I really want to see everyone. I feel bad—I hadn't realized how isolated we have been lately."

He smiled as he gently stroked my hair. "We've been busy with everything for Dartmouth. They understand."

"They'll be moving with us, right?"

He nodded as I breathed a sigh of relief. The last thing I needed was to not only separate from Jake, but from my family as well. "We stick together," he explained. "It's the only way to stay strong. Rose, Emmett, Alice, and Jasper will go to Dartmouth too."

"They applied already?"

He answered with a nod once more. "Alice is excited. She's always had this desire to live in New Hampshire."

"But it's sunnier there. What are we going to do?"

"It will be fine. We will make due," he told me firmly.

"And what about Rosalie?"

"Don't worry about her. If she doesn't want to live in New Hampshire then she and Emmett can separate from us for awhile. Carlisle and Esme fully support us. Carlisle even found a new job at a hospital near campus. We're going to Dartmouth, no matter what."

"Okay," I told him, extremely comforted by the fact that he was in control of the situation.

As Edward gently brushed a strand of my brown hair out of my eyes, I began to wonder how I had ever been weary of our future. I knew it was cliché, but as long as we were all together, we could overcome anything. So I didn't have worry about the sun or the financing or anything for that matter—everything I needed was right in front of me, and I wouldn't have changed that for all of the acceptance letters in the world.

"Are you ready to go to Carlisle and Esme's now?" he asked me.

I nodded. "I'll go get Nessie something for lunch. She really needs to start eating human food more often."

A disapproving look immediately filled his face, although it held a small, amusing smile as well. "Oh why, Bella? You know she hates it. I don't blame her for not being a human food epicure."

"Edward, you know all of the half-breeds say that she needs to eat human food in order to stay strong. They all got really sick by only drinking blood."

"Darling, I wish you the best of luck explaining that to her."

"Well then you can do it. I'm tired of fighting with her to eat right. I always end up the bad guy while you stay the really cool dad for telling her that she can do whatever she wants."

"Sorry…" he chuckled, grazing his hand against my cheek before brought his lips closer to mine, holding them a few inches away like he used to do when I was human. I inhaled his sweet smell, savoring the moment. Finally, I couldn't resist him anymore, and I forcefully pressed my lips to his.

"Not very patient today, are we?" he teased. "I was going to kiss you."

I playfully smacked his shoulder, holding up a teasing, accusing finger. "You should consider the fact that I can't wait to kiss you a compliment."

With a smile, he took my hand into his before we walked back to the living room together. I smiled when I saw that Nessie was still showing Jake what she had been doing for the past week. His fascinated expression told me that he remained interested too, which showed exactly how much he loved her, to be engrossed in every single story she had to tell him.

"Jake, do you want to come with us to Carlisle and Esme's?" I asked him.

"We're going to Grandma and Grandpa's?" Nessie asked excitedly. I nodded my affirmation, which caused Nessie to become even more excited. "Oh, please, Jakey, come with us!"

Jake flashed a brilliant grin. "How can I argue with that? Okay, I'll come." He tickled her, causing a shriek of laughter to ring throughout the house.

Edward held me close as we lovingly watched our daughter and her best friend engage in a tickling fight. I looked back and smiled at him and he smiled in return—despite any differences Edward and Jake still had, I knew he wouldn't pick anyone else for Renesmee. And even though Nessie was still young, it was obvious that they were perfect for each other.

"Are you two ready to go?" Edward asked, laughing softly.

"Yes, Daddy. Race you to the car, Jakey!" Nessie shrieked before running out the door.

Jake smiled at us once again before charging after her, shouting that he was going to beat her, even though he was going to let her win.

Edward chuckled, kissing my cheek. "Honestly, it's as if we have _two_ kids."

Our laughter continued all the way to the car, which we walked to hand-in-hand as always. After only a minute or two of driving, we reached the house. A swarm of our ecstatic family members greeted us before we had even stepped out of the car.

"I knew you would come," Alice declared as she skipped over to place a kiss on each of our cheeks, even Jacob's.

"We've missed you guys. It's been awhile," Esme stated as she hugged me tightly.

"I know. We've missed you too," I replied, hugging the rest of my precious family.

We all went into the living room to socialize while Jacob and Nessie stayed outside to play. Everyone was talking excitedly, due to fact that it was the first time we had all been together in over a week, something very rare for our tight-knit family.

"Everybody, Bella received some really great news today," Edward announced, his proud grin almost bragging by itself.

"Oh, congratulations, Bella!" Alice interjected merrily. "But it's not as if it's news to me. I've known since last week."

"Alice," Edward grumbled at his sister. "Do you mind letting Bella actually tell the news?"

"Oh, sorry," she chirped quickly in apology.

"Now, as I was saying," Edward continued. "_Bella_ has some very exciting news. Tell them, darling."

"Well, everybody…" I paused, for dramatic effect; apparently, what I had to say was very important to all of them, despite the obvious significance of Edward's large monetary and my small academic contributions. "I got into Dartmouth!" I finished with a giggle.

"Congratulations, Bella!" Esme exclaimed, throwing her arms around me once again.

Carlisle lovingly planted a kiss on my forehead. "We are very proud of you."

Emmett reached out his hand to high-five me. "Nice job, Bella!"

Jasper was next. He did not say anything, only kissing the top of my head. As I smiled at him, I noticed for the first time how peculiar he looked today. His face was solemn, depressed. The sparking light in his eyes was gone, replaced by grief and despair. The corners of his mouth were turned down into a seemingly permanent frown—the kind a person could not change into a smile no matter how hard he or she tried. I desperately wished to help cheer him up, as he had done for me many times before.

Glancing around the room, I wondered if anyone else had noticed Jasper's abnormal behavior. Everything appeared to be fine—smiling faces, one big, happy family. No one seemed to notice Jasper—or maybe, for some reason, they were simply refusing acknowledgment.

Alice's hug brought me back into the conversation. "Oh, I can't wait to go to New Hampshire," she squealed with delight, reminding me of an excited Nessie.

Suddenly, the attention turned to Rosalie, who I realized was the only person not to say anything. She had her arms crossed in front of her as she looked down at the ground, knowing she was about to be put on the spot. And I knew exactly what she was going to say—that she didn't want to go to New Hampshire. That it was too sunny there, so they would have to stay indoors a majority of the time. That the whole family should not be forced to move to that awful place just because Edward and I had a frivolous desire to go to college there.

"Rosalie, don't you want to congratulate your sister?" Carlisle asked gently.

I shot a helpless glance toward Edward, unsure of how Rose was going to react and somewhat frightened of it. However, he was staring at his stubborn sister, giving her a glare that dared her to complain. When I looked back at my sister, I was relieved to see that she now wore a small on her beautiful face. Her now warm eyes met mine before she glided toward me for a hug.

"Congrats, Bella," she said quietly, but sincerely.

Instant relief filled me before I gave a response of "Thanks, Rosalie."

I felt myself being drawn to Edward's side by his strong arm before he placed a kiss on my cheek. I smiled shyly, embarrassed from all the attention that I did not deserve.

And then, Carlisle extended out a hand toward Edward. "May I see you in the other room? Alice, you as well, please."

Edward nodded and he and his sister quickly followed him into the kitchen. I noted that Esme was now staring at Jasper uncertainly—and Rose and Emmett were doing the same.

"Jasper, are you okay?" Emmett questioned with concern.

"I'm fine, Edward," Jasper replied, keeping his gaze away from his brother.

"Dude, I'm Emmett." He gave both Rosalie and me a questioning look, to which we responded with a shrug that told him that we knew just as much as he did.

"Sorry," Jasper apologized quickly before turning to look out the window.

"Honey, is there something you would like to talk about?" Esme asked, placing a hand on her son's shoulder. However, Jasper simply shook his head, refusing to meet her loving eyes.

Carlisle, Edward, and Alice reappeared into the room a minute later. I studied them closely, attempting to figure out if what they had talked about had been regarding Jasper. However, they seemed completely normal, unaffected by his strange behavior.

Nessie suddenly ran up to Edward and tugged on his shirt, indicating for him to bend down in order for her to whisper into his ear. I wanted to explain to her that this was pointless due to the fact that every single person in the room had impeccable hearing, but I restrained myself—whispering made her feel comfortable. "Daddy, may Jakey and I go play outside?" she asked him.

"First you need to eat something, darling," Edward replied gently.

"Are we going hunting?" Nessie questioned, her voice a little above a whisper this time.

He glanced at me and then back to Nessie when I gave him a prompting look. "No, sweetheart, we have food for you here."

"Yuck," she groaned in disgust, realizing that we were going to make her eat dreaded human food.

"Renesmee, I don't want to hear it. Please go eat the food from your mother's bag and then you may go out and play," he ordered with assertiveness.

"Okay, Daddy," Nessie replied sweetly, obediently skipping off to find my bag.

"How did you do that?" I whispered to him as I watched with amazement as Nessie quickly devoured all of her food before scurrying outside with an excited Jacob.

He shrugged, a huge, prideful grin once again planted on his face. "It's a gift."

"Well then, since you're _so_ talented, feeding her is your job from now on."

"That's fine. At least she listens to me," he mumbled teasingly.

"She still doesn't like human food?" Carlisle interjected.

Edward and I both turned to him and shook our heads at the same time. "She usually puts up a fight every time we want her to eat it," I explained.

"Hmm…" Carlisle said, pondering this. "The half-breeds said that she should start to like it after two and a half years."

"And it has been three," Edward stated, concerned.

"Maybe everyone's different," Esme suggested. "I'm sure not every single half-breed begins to like human food after two and a half years."

"Your mother's right—Nessie will probably begin to like it soon," Carlisle agreed. "In the meantime, keep giving it to her. She will eventually come to like it."

"Okay," Edward and I both said at the same time, taking comfort in Carlisle's sincere words. It was times such as these that I was extremely grateful he was a doctor, even though he did not even remotely specialize in half-breeds. If there was one sign that Renesmee was unhealthy, Carlisle would be able to spot it and assist us in getting the help she needed.

"So when are we planning on moving?" Emmett asked.

Knowing his answer could cause disagreement, Carlisle pondered for a moment before giving his answer. "We will probably leave sometime during the summer." He looked around the room in search of approving nods.

"Oh, I want to go now, Carlisle," Alice whined. "I'm sick of Washington. We've been here too long."

"We _have_ been here awhile, Carlisle. Has anyone suspected anything?" Esme asked quietly, concerned. She looked toward Alice and Edward, the security forces of the family.

Edward shook his head while Alice shrugged. "Not that I know of," she stated.

"Don't worry, darling," Carlisle soothed Esme, gently rubbing her back. "We can stay for two more months. They are out of school and Edward just recently made certain that no one at the hospital has thought anything of my non aging; they simply figure that I am lucky to age well. There is no reason for people to suspect anything."

"But everything is so _boring_ here. We can't go anywhere because we are supposed to be attending college," Rosalie complained.

"Actually, we're supposed to have graduated already, babe," Emmett corrected her, resting his elbow on her shoulder.

She gritted her teeth in a sharp response. "I know. And do we look old enough to have graduated? We need to leave this town as soon as possible."

"Rose, Carlisle is the leader of this family, _not you_," Edward growled at his sister, his voice threatening, menacing. I placed my hand on the small of his back, hoping to calm him down.

Rosalie scowled, once again crossing her arms in front of her chest. I noticed that her frustration was Emmett's cue—he immediately wrapped her in his embrace and kissed the back of her head, whispering something into her ear.

"Edward, honey, be nice to her. We all want to leave here," Esme scolded gently.

"I say we leave in a month. That way we can get settled in before we start school," Alice offered sweetly, breaking the tension that seemed to be quickly enveloping the room. She turned to Jasper, who was still in his trance-like state of looking out the window. "Jasper, you agree with me, don't you?"

"I agree with Carlisle," he replied, an almost robotic response that was enhanced by the fact that he failed to look up at her.

"Of course. Everyone agrees with Carlisle," Rosalie mumbled, angrily looking at the ground as if Jasper's unprocessed answer truly held merit.

Carlisle ignored her and turned his attention to me with a gentle hand on my shoulder. "Bella, since it is primarily you going to this college, what would you like to do?"

"Um…" I looked helplessly at Edward, not knowing how to answer; I absolutely despised conflict within our family. He gave me a slight nod, indicating that I should tell them my true opinion—he would take care of anyone who might be angry with me. "Well, I really want to leave early…"

"Yes!" Rosalie now pleasantly whispered, reaching over to give Alice a high-five.

"But," I continued, watching with displeasure as the smiles on their faces instantly fell. "I want to stay as long as possible for Jake and Nessie. They're going to miss each other so much."

Carlisle nodded, understanding my dilemma. "And what are your thoughts on this, Edward?" he asked his son.

"I agree with Bella. I think we should leave in the middle of the summer. We have plenty of time—no need to rush. Besides, it'll help Nessie deal with the fact that she won't get to see Jacob as much as she would like to. Leaving later would make it a lot easier on Bella and me."

"And that's alright with you, Bella?" Carlisle asked.

I forced myself to nod my head, making certain that I avoided Rosalie's icy gaze.

I watched Carlisle look around the room, examining the facial features of his divided family in order to obtain a more accurate depiction of how they really felt about the subject. "Everyone?"

Thankfully, Alice understood. "If that's what Bella wants to do, then I'm all for it."

"It's fine by me," Emmett agreed, although hesitantly, as if he was reluctant due to his stubborn wife.

"Me too," Jasper responded, this time not having to be prompted to answer, although I was sure that he was still entranced in whatever had overtaken his mind today.

Everyone turned to Rosalie, waiting for her answer. "Rose?" Carlisle asked

A small smile appeared on her face as she sighed. "Well, if it'll make Nessie happy, then it's fine by me."

The frenzy of excitement that immediately broke out among my family members now that a decision had been made that everyone agreed upon caused me to grow anxious as well, despite my guilt for leaving Jake behind. After all, this was going to be the first time that I moved with the Cullen family. In the new town that we resided in, we would be a mystery, just as the Cullen's were in Forks. People would be wondering who we were, where we came from, and why we seemed so different from everybody else. It excited me to know this, to realize that this was the first of many, many times when I was going to be able to take on a new identity, to start and entirely new life, only carrying with me the people I loved the most in this world.

"Ridiculous," Edward suddenly muttered, shattering the excitement instantly. He crossed his arms in front of his chest, immediately grabbing everyone's attention.

"What's ridiculous, honey?" Esme asked him sweetly.

"How we have to go through this every damn time we are making a decision. Grow up, Rosalie. The world does not revolve around you."

I forced myself to look at her and was surprised to see that hurt had quickly flooded her eyes. "I never said the world revolved around me, Edward," she seethed, her teeth clenched.

"No, but you damn well act like it, everyday of your life!" he yelled, causing everyone to freeze. The room became bellicose; no one dared to move. Edward grew quiet again, although the intensity of his voice did not lessen. "I'm sick of it, Rosalie. We're all sick of it."

"Son…" Carlisle started.

"You know it's true, Carlisle. Everyone knows it's true, even Emmett. You're horrible, Rosalie."

"Edward…" Like the good husband he was, Emmett was ready to defend his wife, but stopped when Rosalie held up a steady hand. She slowly walked toward Edward, her domineer surprisingly calm.

"If this is how you all feel, maybe I shouldn't be in this family anymore," she stated slowly and evenly, her voice mirroring how she appeared.

"_Maybe you're right_," Edward snarled, furiously accentuating every word.

Esme gasped as she drew her hand up to her mouth. "Edward Anthony Cullen, that's a horrible thing to say."

He didn't back down, however. In fact, his eyes grew even more intense, more determined to hurt Rosalie. "I'm sorry, but it's true. You bring this family down with your constant complaining and criticizing."

I had never seen him like this, so willing to unmercifully attack a member of our beloved family. It was as if he was out of control today, like his emotions were controlling him instead of the other way around—and it terrified me.

Rosalie slowly looked around the room, her glare now livid, mirroring her brother's. "_Is that how you all feel_?"

Esme's loving eyes were wide with worry, terrified that her precious family was falling apart at the seams. "No, of course not, darling," she answered quietly, but firmly.

"No, Rosalie, we don't feel like that," Carlisle agreed, wrapping his hand around Esme's in another attempt at silent comfort.

"Alice?" Rose snapped, glaring at her sister.

"Well, Rose, sometimes you can get a little frustrating…" she practically whispered, her voice hesitant. "But you mean well," she quickly explained at the sight of Rosalie's shocked face. "Nobody thinks you should leave the family. Not even Edward."

She nodded her thanks and turned to Jasper. "What about you?"

Jasper glanced up at her, a curious look in his eyes though he did not question it. "I agree with Carlisle," he repeated.

Although Rosalie could see that he obviously still wasn't involved in the conversation, she accepted his answer as the truth. Then she turned to me.

"Bella," she snapped, her eyes fierce and defending, brought on not by anger, but by hurt. "I guess there's no point in asking you."

"Rose, I…I…" I stammered, trying to turn away the feeling of intimidation that Rosalie gave to me since the first time I even saw her.

"You what?" she snarled softly.

I took a deep, comforting breath before I began. "I…"

"Her feelings are the same as mine, Rosalie," Edward suddenly interjected. "Do you blame her? Come on, ever since the first time you've met her all you've been was mean. Even after she and I have been married for three years _and _had a child together, you still treat her like she's not worthy to be in this family."

"I do not, Edward!" she yelled, struggling to escape Emmett's tight grasp.

"Yes you do! It's all about Rosalie, isn't it? Always about you!" he yelled back.

"Edward, Rosalie, please stop," Esme pleaded steadily, although I knew she was on the verge of a breakdown.

"Jasper, can you please help?" Carlisle asked, stepping in front of Jasper's gaze so that he was looking directly at him.

"Jazz, do something," I heard Alice whisper urgently to her husband, her eyes pleading and frightened, as if violence could break out any minute.

Instant tranquility filled the room as Jasper used his power to make everyone calm down. Taking this as my cue, I grabbed Edward's hand, firmly pulling him out of the room, knowing that he could quickly grow angry again.

"What's wrong with you? Why would you do that?" I asked sharply, trying to keep my voice down. I could hear Esme and Carlisle scolding a silent Rosalie in the other room.

"You know she had it coming," he answered back in the same tone of voice I was using, like he had done nothing wrong.

"That doesn't give you any right. I think you need to go apologize."

"Fine. But this was not the day for her to be acting like this. It was your day to be excited about getting into Dartmouth. And with Jasper..." He stopped as he closed his eyes and sighed deeply, realizing he had started a subject he did not wish to accompany with an elucidation.

"What's wrong with Jasper?"

His eyes remained closed as he put his hands to his head, rubbing his temples. I supposed I too would be angry if I had just generated a topic that I had no desire to discuss, but knew we were going to anyway. "Nothing, Bella," he said simply, praying that was enough but knowing it wasn't.

"Please tell me. I'm worried about him."

His furrowed his eyebrows, frustration escaping with every deep breath he took. "You're not going to drop this, are you?"

I tilted my head, giving him a little smile to ease the tension. "Don't you know me by now? Of course I'm not going to drop it."

Sighing, he nodded in some form of agreement—either he was agreeing to tell me what happened or agreeing that I never drop things. After a few seconds, he confirmed that it was both when he began to explain. "Jasper's acting strange because..." he bent lower to me, whispering the last part like a dreaded, dark secret. "...he deviated from our menu of choice."

I gasped. Jasper had eaten a human.

"When did it happen? How did it happen? Who was it? Was it someone we knew?" The questions seemed to pour out on their own, although they did not seem to be asked or answered fast enough. I had never dealt with the horrible reality of someone in my family attacking a human—the closest I had come to was when Edward had to resist killing me.

"It was a woman. Yesterday. She was stranded on the side of the road after she crashed her car. Jasper was driving and pulled over to help her. She was scared at first because she didn't know him, but he used his power to make her relax. He offered to take her to the police station and she agreed and got into the car with him."

"Why would he do that? He knows that he's not strong enough right now."

He shook his head in disagreement. "He _is_ strong enough, Bella. At least, he's strong enough to resist a normal person, one with average blood."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, do you remember when I told you that for someone who has been one of our kind for a while, the smell of a certain kind of blood causes us to obtain a great desire to drink that blood?"

"Yeah..." I said softly, taking in the dark, scary memory, figuring out its relation to Jasper. "So you're saying the same thing happened to him?"

He nodded gravely.

"Oh, Edward," I said, throwing my arms around him, knowing as well as I knew my own name that I would find comfort in his strong hold. "That poor girl."

"I know," he said with his face buried in my shoulder. He held on to me for dear life, apparently finding a similar comfort in me. "But believe me, Jasper feels horrible about it."

I looked up at him, another interrogation-like question on my lips. "But why aren't his eyes red? Shouldn't they have turned red when he drank human blood?"

"He's wearing contacts. He's extremely ashamed and doesn't want anyone to know what happened. You absolutely cannot tell the others—it'll kill him if they find out."

I nodded understandingly, telling myself that I could not even give the slightest hint that I knew. If Jasper had to pick between Esme, Rosalie, Emmett, and me knowing his secret, I knew without-a-doubt that I would be the last person he would choose. Jasper was always a little jealous that I was as strong as him, maybe stronger, when it came to dealing with resisting human blood. "You, Alice, and Carlisle know?"

"Yes. Alice saw a vision of Jasper right before he attacked the girl. She ran as fast as she could to find him."

"What can we do to help?"

"Well, we can keep the mood happy..." He trailed off at the end, realizing the hypocrisy of his statement.

"Which is the complete opposite of what you were doing," I noted, pointing out the obvious.

"Bella, I was inside his head," he explained softly, a hint of regret about his behavior in his voice, although his explanation was bound to be just. He paused for a minute, deep in thought, vividly remembering what Jasper was thinking. "I could feel his pain," he continued, his voice still soft and heavyhearted. "He feels weak, he feels helpless, like he shouldn't even be a member of our family. And I could see the look in the girl's eyes right before he killed her. I mean, Jasper killed her quickly, which is a very good thing—at least she didn't suffer. But there was a second, even a millisecond before he attacked that I could clearly see that she knew she was going to die. You can't watch that being replayed and replayed in someone's head without getting upset yourself. Of course I was going to lash out at the first person I could."

"This is awful," I replied sadly, filled with the thick melancholy that enveloped the atmosphere.

He took my hand in response, kissing it softly before leading me back into the other room, where I tried my best not to look at Jasper in an examining manner.

"Better?" Esme asked, scanning Edward for signs of remorse.

"Mom, I'm sorry about all of that." Edward's words were sincere and respectful, the ideal apology from a son.

Esme's eyes grew softer upon hearing this. Her mouth became straight, not yet the smile that I loved to see upon her face, but more than the terrible frown she had been giving. "Although I appreciate it, I'm not the one you should be apologizing to," she answered strictly, but lovingly.

He sighed, turning to Rosalie, who was waiting patiently. "Rose, I'm really sorry. I should not have said those things to you. I was just extremely frustrated."

She smiled slightly, and I tried to figure out if it was just an act to please Carlisle and Esme. And then, she did something that was completely out of character—she reached out and touched Edward's hand, nodding her forgiveness to him. "You were right, I was acting horribly. I promise, I'll change. I don't want my own brother thinking I'm a complete waste of space."

I stood back, shocked at what I was seeing, wondering if the higher-being purpose of this whole disaster was so that Rosalie would sincerely changed for the better.

The corners of Edward's mouth turned up in a smile. Taking her hand into his, he gave her a loving kiss on the cheek. I smiled—maybe the fight between them was exactly was Rosalie needed. As far as I knew, nobody had ever told her those things. Even if they had, I was sure this was the first time she had actually listened.

But I couldn't help but wonder: could a person be changed so quickly? Could a person completely forget who he or she was and become someone completely different? I guess someone could try to change, but at some point a hint of the past would show, like a ghost that would not go away. So maybe Rosalie would try as hard as she could to change, but at certain times we would see some of her old personality, the part of her that nobody cared for. I decided not to get my hopes up—Rosalie could easily end up changing her mind to truly not wanting to be different, then that was it. No one could force someone else to alter who they were; free will was the reason for that.

I stopped my thoughts and, like the rest of my family, looked over at Alice, who had gone stone silent. A terrified look was plastered on her face as her eyes darted from window to window.

"What did you see?" Carlisle asked urgently, apparently referring to a vision she had just had.

"They're here," she whispered, barely getting the words out.

I thought back to when Edward had said those words to me earlier, in reference to my acceptance letters. But my mind screamed to me that the reality, painful as well as true, of what Alice was talking about was much scarier than those now minuscule pieces of paper.

The Volturi were here.


	4. Chapter Three

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**"Fears are nothing more than a state of mind."**

**-Napoleon Hill**

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**Chapter Three**

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**Bella**

The Volturi were coming—I suddenly felt sick to my stomach, if that human quality was even possible anymore. Thankfully we had already spoken to Nessie about them. While at first she had begged us to tell them not to come, she eventually calmed down and agreed to trust us. However, I still didn't think she was ready to face them. But then again, who could truly be ready after they realized what a terrifying coven the Volturi actually was? I knew I had wanted to Volturi to come so I could get it over with, for both my daughter's sake and my own. But now that it was actually happening, I wanted to take Nessie and run as far away as possible. Although naturally I was beyond averse, I was also realistic—we would eventually have to face them, and I would rather Nessie have Jacob next to her to help ease her fears.

I glanced over to Carlisle and Esme, who were talking quietly to each other, their voices so soft that no one could hear them. Carlisle was probably reassuring a worried Esme that the Volturi were not here to cause trouble this time. I turned my attention to Rosalie and Emmett, who were busy staring into each other eyes, as usual. Both of them were apparently unconcerned with the fact that the Volturi were coming back, no matter how peaceful the reunion would be. I noted Jasper, who was still in his own little world of self-pity, well-deserved but somewhat inappropriate at this time. Then I looked at Alice, expecting her to give me a reassuring smile, the smile that gave me strength and confidence, a sister's smile. However, her face was completely blank, mirroring Jasper's. She looked statuesque as she stared straight ahead, concentrating hard as if she wanted another vision to overtake her consciousness. Although I was still worried about the Volturi, I could not help but smile; Alice was probably doing an interpretation of how Jasper had looked the past day, maybe in hopes of breaking him out of his depression.

Suddenly, I saw someone fall to his or her knees in front of me; it was Edward. Because he was staring straight ahead at the window, I could not see his face. I quickly walked around to face him, unsure of what he was doing. His expression was exactly like Alice's—completely lifeless. I wanted to scream at both of them; if this was some kind of joke, it was not the time.

"It's okay, right? They're just here to check up on Renesmee," I said slowly, but with conviction. Edward had told me that was all they wanted to do—and there was no one in this world I trusted more than him. I waited for him to reinforce what he had told me earlier; that everything was going to be alright. However, his expression remained the same, telling me otherwise. I glanced back and forth from Edward to Alice, quickly realizing that their expressions were emanating the fact that something was terribly wrong.

Alice snapped out of her trance and turned to look at me. She saw the panic that had overtaken me and immediately looked away, closing her eyes and shaking her head sadly.

"What's going on?" I asked quietly, my voice filled not just with fear, but pure terror.

"They can't do this," Edward suddenly growled, his voice low and threatening.

"What's going on?" I repeated, much more forcefully now. I stepped in front of Edward, breaking his trance so he would be forced to answer me.

Edward looked up at me, his eyes suddenly deadly, matching his tone of voice. "Get Nessie."

"Why? What's wrong with Nessie?" I yelled, panicking, looking around the room at everyone else who seemed just as confused.

"Carlisle," Edward said, standing up and turning to our father. "They want to do it. Permanently."

"No," Esme cried softly, repudiating the words that her son just spoke. Her firm stance loosened and she looked as if she was going to fall over before she grabbed Carlisle's arm for support.

"They want to..." Carlisle said, choking on the words. His entire face filled with fear, something I had never seen on the face of the man who always seemed to have everything under control.

"I'll get Nessie," Jasper suddenly whispered, hastily striding to the door to find his niece.

"No, Jazz!" Alice ordered, causing him to stop in her tracks. "Leave her outside. There might be another vision coming—if she's near me I won't be able to see it."

"Tell me what's happening!" I shrieked, my voice echoing through the enormous house. I listened to the unvarying repetition, each one allowing me to hear for myself how much pain I was currently in even before I fully understood.

"Bella, they're..." Edward stopped, either unable or unwilling to go on.

"Bella, they want to change Nessie," Carlisle said quietly as he looked at me with eyes filled with pain at having to tell me this news, news I still didn't understand.

"Change her?" I asked, confused. However, the second the words were released from my own mouth, I understood—but I refused to accept it as true. I stayed steady, relaxed, staring at my family. I struggled with myself, trying not to confirm my worst fears, although all the confirmations were painfully obvious.

Rosalie gasped, staring at Carlisle with eyes that begged him to take back everything he had just said, to tell everyone that it was all a joke. However, like everyone else, he just looked away and closed his eyes.

"They want to change her into a..." Emmett asked, his deep voice filled with grief. He gently placed a comforting hand on Rosalie's shoulder before she turned around and buried her face into his chest. I had done this a million times with Edward—seeking comfort in his familiar body, his strong hold on me. However, I knew this time there would be no comfort to find.

"Vampire," I said, barely breathing, for the second time in my life speaking the word that no one else dared to utter. It was as if they truly believed by not saying it, it wouldn't be true. But it was true—a betraying kind of truth, the worst truth I had ever heard in my life.

I suddenly started falling to the ground, and though it seemed to be in slow motion, I was unable to stop myself. Right before I hit the floor, Emmett and Carlisle caught me, holding both of my arms to ease me back to my feet.

But there was no comfort.

I felt Emmett wrap his arms around me, not replacing Edward, but fulfilling his prominent position in my life—my big brother. He held me close, gently stroking my hair, kissing the top of my head every few seconds.

But there was no comfort.

And then there was Edward, who forcefully pushed Emmett away, taking me into his arms. Emmett backed off respectfully and walked back over to Rosalie. Edward held me tightly, as if he thought I was going to leave him.

But still there was no comfort.

It wasn't that we would lose Nessie if she was changed—she would be the same sweet little girl we all knew and loved. Her mind would continue to grow at the rate it was now. She would mature mentally and emotionally—just like the rest of us. But also like the rest of us, she would fail to mature physically. And while it was okay for us to be trapped in young adult bodies, bodies that would allow us to live on our own, go to high school, rent a hotel room, the body of a seven year old would be not be something someone would want to be in for the rest of his or her life. If anything ever happened to any of us, there would be no option to try to reside in a town of people unless she found another vegetarian vampire family to live with. She could never go off on her own because no human in his or her right mind would believe that she was an adult—the lack of senescence of the lives we lived would be an enormous hindrance she would never be able to overcome.

"Where are they?" I whispered, breaking away from Edward a little bit so I could turn to Alice. "You said they were here."

"They're almost here. About three minutes away," Alice said quietly.

"We have to get out of here," I said urgently, panic permeating my voice.

Edward gently grabbed my chin, forcing me to look into his pain-filled eyes. "Bella, listen to me. There's no where we can go. They'll find us."

"Edward we have to leave!" I shouted, breaking away from his grasp to turn away from him. I didn't deserve to be comforted—I had put my little girl in danger. I had told her to trust us; now what was I going to tell her? Not only were the Volturi coming back to check on her—she was now going to have to go through the incredibly painful transformation of becoming pure vampire.

Edward reached out and pulled me back to him, unwilling to let me go. He buried his face in my hair, stroking the back of my head. "It's going to be okay. I won't let them change her. I won't let them."

We were all silent for a minute, holding each other in our grief. There were no words to describe how horrible I felt—I had put my own daughter in danger. Despite what Edward thought, I knew deep down that the Volturi were only out to make our lives miserable—why else did they always cause us this much pain? But I wasn't going to let them change her. I would die before I let them change her.

"They're coming to the door," Edward said, tightening his grip on me; I closed my eyes, wishing he would take his wife and daughter and run away as fast as possible.

"I'll greet them. Everyone stay here," I heard Carlisle order softly.

I listened to the sound of his footsteps, usually light but now extremely heavy as he went to complete a simple task that would forever change our lives. I kept my eyes closed tightly, not wanting to see the man who had been a father to me open the door to my worst nightmare. I heard the footsteps suddenly stop, even though I knew he had not walked far enough to reach the door. He stood still for a moment in the eerily silent room. Hope suddenly filled me—maybe he had decided that we might have a better chance if we tried to escape.

"Edward, hold on to her," I heard him finally say, and I knew that he was referring to me--he was afraid that I was going to attack the Volturi when they came in. I guess Carlisle knew me extremely well, for that was exactly what I had been elaborating a plan around. He then continued his daunting task of letting our greatest enemy into our home.

"Hello," I heard a deep, enchanting voice say. I shuddered as I recognized it as Caius's—the voice that I had heard many times trying to convince Aro to kill vampires that broke their sadistic rules. I clung tighter to Edward as I remembered and for first time in my life wished I wasn't a vampire; humans never had such vivid memories of the terrors of their past.

"Hello. Please come in." Although Carlisle had somehow made his voice relaxed and welcoming, I could still hear a hint of threatening hatred in it. I wished he would use that hatred to demand the Volturi leave his innocent family alone, but I knew he would not—he was too brave for that. Cowards like me would tell them to leave; people like Carlisle faced the things they feared head on.

Keeping my eyes closed, I tuned into my other senses even more, hoping they would distract me from doing what my motherly instincts were begging me to do—either run or attack. I listened to the sound of multiple footsteps entering the room, using my impeccable hearing to realize that a total of eight had come for this visit. As I inhaled the smell in the room, another memory flooded back to me, a memory of the last time they were here. Fear and hate instantly filled me. We were protected back then, backed by many allied covens that were determined to stand next to us and defend Renesmee. Now we were alone, in the scariest sense of the word I had ever felt. The same fear washed over me, the same determinedness to stop them, though this time her life was not in danger. I supposed that as a mother, it didn't matter what someone was planning on doing to your child—if they were going to hurt him or her in any way, you would use all your strength and power to stop them.

I suddenly felt Edward's fingers at my chin, lifting it slowly so my face would be turned to the Volturi. I turned my body and slowly opened my eyes, obeying his silent request—he did not want me to show fear. He wanted me to stand strong as we defended our only child for the second time.

I looked upon the faces of the coven before me, just as terrifying as ever. Their blood red eyes were gleaming, satisfied that they were here once again. They reminded me of the dream Nessie had—they were standing together, their dark black cloaks accurately portraying the evil that surrounded them. Caius and Marcus were in the front followed by Jane, Alec, and Demitri. In the very back stood Aro, with two other vampires I did not recognize—one with a black cloak on and one without. They all moved forward as one, not in a threatening way, but as a form of unity. The expression on Aro's face made me sick—it was pleasant and peaceful, as if this visit was just to catch up with old friends.

I tore my eyes away from the Volturi, keeping them in the corner of my vision, to look at my family. They were standing next to Edward and me, forming a solid, straight line. I knew this was a symbol to remind the Volturi that we were going to stand together once again. Esme slowly walked forward to stand next to Carlisle, who was still in front of us, a barrier between us and the Volturi. These were Esme and Carlisle's parental instincts—to stand in front of their children and deal with the problem until they needed our help.

Suddenly, I heard the back door slam shut followed by a menacing growl. I quickly looked behind me to see Jacob in his wolf form, his body bent in attacking position as he prepared to kill anyone who tried to hurt Renesmee. She stood behind him, a look of pure terror on her face as she realized that her worst nightmare was literally here.

"Jacob, please take Nessie outside," Carlisle ordered softly.

Jake let out another growl before turning around to usher Nessie out the door. However, she stood still, taking her gaze off the Volturi to look at Edward and me. Though it was no longer beating, I felt my heart break into a thousand pieces as I looked into her terrified brown eyes. Her intuitive nature had betrayed her just as we had—she knew something was wrong.

I begin to pull away from Edward so I could take Nessie in my arms. Edward grabbed my hand, pulling me back. I looked up at him questioningly, wondering why he was restraining me.

"Carlisle is telling me to stay where we are. He says if we go to her, she'll probably become more worried," he whispered softly, making sure no one else could hear.

I nodded in reluctant agreement as Edward once again secured his hand around my waist.

Carlisle gently touched Esme's arm, indicating for her to stay where she was. Everyone watched as he slowly walked over to his granddaughter. Alhough everyone would be able to hear him, he bent down to whisper in her ear. He knew it would calm her down if she believed the entire room was not going to know what he was going to say. "Nessie, darling, please wait outside with Jacob. Everything is going to be alright. We'll come out to get you in a little bit."

Nessie nodded slowly before throwing her arms around Carlisle, stifling a sob. He held her close, once again whispering to her that everything was going to be okay. And I knew it wasn't a lie or a way to make her feel better—just like Edward and me, Carlisle wasn't going to stop until everything was back to normal.

Carlisle then turned to Jacob. "If you change back into your normal self, it will make her feel better."

Jake grunted his agreement before he and Nessie reluctantly left the room to go back outside.

"She didn't have to leave, you know. After all, this involves her," Caius said through gritted teeth, furious that we had sent her away. I knew that he was longing to see the painful look on her face when they told her that they were going to change her—he was a sick, masochistic creature and for that I wanted Edward to rip him into a thousand pieces.

Carlisle walked back to Esme, taking her hand, silently apologizing for leaving her. "We would all feel more comfortable if Renesmee was not in the room right now, if that's alright with you."

"It is perfectly alright, my friend," Aro agreed, speaking for the first time since their arrival. I figured he would move to the front, which was his normal authoritative position in his clan. However, he stayed where he was, seemingly content with being in the background.

"Shall I tell them the reason for our visit?" Caius asked, keeping his gaze on us while talking to Aro.

Aro shook his head, parting his lips in disapproval. "Now, now, Caius, let's not forget they have a mind reader and a future teller in their clan. I'm sure they are well aware of our desire."

"You can't do this," Edward said boldly, trying to hide the fear that I knew he was feeling. He gripped my hand tighter as all of his muscles tensed.

A small smile once again appeared on Aro's face as his eyes twinkled with a sick form of amusement. "Ah, but we can, young one."

"Why don't you drop your new shield so that I can hear what you're really thinking?" Edward suggested, his voice now a terrifying snarl.

Although I hadn't thought I could become anymore terrified, I felt an additional surge of fear rise through me. Edward was not able to read Aro's thoughts because of one of the two men who were next to him--his new shield. For some reason, he did not want his own thoughts or the thoughts of the other vampire read, but did not care about the other's. I realized that this meant they were hiding something from everyone.

I looked at the one on Aro's right, the one with the black cloak on. He looked very much in place with the coven as he stared at his, his eyes blood red and menacing. I then looked at the one on the left, the one without the cloak—he apparently was not a part of the Volturi coven. He was looking at the ground, apparently very uncomfortable being here. Maybe he felt a hint of remorse, unlike the other heartless monsters that stood before me. I studied him even closer, realizing he looked somewhat familiar, but unable to figure out who he was.

I glanced back at Aro; the smile on his face did not diminish after the public announcement of the shield blocking his thoughts. He ignored Edward, turning back to Carlisle. "Maybe you should learn to control your coven. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe you are still the leader."

"May I remind you that Renesmee is Edward's daughter. It is natural that he would be defensive."

As always, Carlisle's voice remained steady and calm.

I remembered this, the familiar battle of words between our covens—it had happened the last time we interacted with them. They wanted us to get violent, in order for them to have a justifiable reason to punish us. But Carlisle was not going to let that happen. I felt a wave of tranquility wash through me, and I turned to look at Jasper—for the second time that day, he had used his power to calm us down. Edward relaxed his tight grip as he took a deep breath, trying to get the full effect of Jasper's assistance. I knew Edward realized what would happen if he suddenly turned violent—all of our chances of negotiating would be gone.

"Yes, yes I do realize this, my friend. And what a beautiful little family the three of them make." Aro turned his gaze to me, only for a second, and then looked back at Carlisle. "That little girl of yours has grown a lot since we last saw her..." he paused, thinking. "...three years ago?"

Carlisle nodded. I wished I could see his eyes, in order to see if they were at all threatening, despite how calm he appeared to be. "Yes, it was three years ago. And if I remember correctly, you concluded that my granddaughter was of no threat to the secret of our world."

"And let me assure you, we were sincere when we came to that conclusion. However, after three years of deliberating, we have decided that she cannot live in both worlds. And since there is no way for her to be changed to human, the logical answer is for her to be changed into one of us."

Carlisle nodded once more, as if he wanted Aro to know that he understood his perspective, but wanted him to consider a different approach. "With all due respect, doesn't that seem a little hypocritical? What about everything you've said about immortal children?"

"Ah, yes I thought you would ask that. If you'll remember, the term immortal children only applies to infants. Your child is biologically seven-years-old, so her being changed will not violate any laws. You understand, don't you? We certainly can't have her living like this, half of one world, half of another. She needs to be changed, for the good of our world."

"What about the others? There were other half-breeds, the ones that my daughter Alice and my son Jasper found in South Africa. Are they going to be changed as well?"

"It's already done, my friend. In fact, here is one right next to me. I trust you remember Nahuel." Aro moved to the side slightly, in order to bring the man behind him into full view.

I stifled a gasp, now understanding why the man in the back looked familiar yet unfamiliar. He was the half-breed that Alice and Jasper had gone to find, to prove that half vampires, half humans were not a threat to the vampire world. He looked different now that he was a full vampire, but I could still tell that it was him. Even though Aro was now addressing him, he kept his gaze down, probably saddened by the fact that Nessie would have to undergo a painful transformation as well.

My father of sorts took a moment to study Nahuel. The room stayed completely silent before he took a deep breath and continued his seemingly hopeless negotiations. "Aro, listen to yourself. You want to change a seven-year-old half-breed into a full vampire. She is going to be trapped in her seven-year-old body forever—do you truly want to do that?"

"I'm sorry, Carlisle, there is nothing I can do. The decision has already been made. She cannot live in both worlds—she must become one of us."

"No!" I suddenly screamed, trying to break away from Edward, who had instantly wrapped both of his arms around my waist the second he heard my cry. "You can't change her! Please! You cannot change her!" I struggled against Edward's tight grasp, lunging myself forward to try to break free.

"There _has_ to be another way," Edward snapped through gritted teeth, and I knew that in a minute, I was not the only one who was going to need restrained. I stopped struggling against him, once again wrapping my arms around him. As we held each other close, I felt the feeling of a vampire's form of crying come forth, something that hadn't happened in a long time—in the past three perfect years, there had truly been nothing to cry about.

"Well, now that you mention it, there is one more way," Aro noted quietly.

I shot my head up, pulling away from Edward to look at Aro. "What did you say?" I asked, certain that I had heard him wrong.

Aro smiled, as always, seemingly amused by our pain. "I said there is one more way."

"What is it, Aro?" Carlisle demanded, his voice no longer calm and rational, but an unfamiliar growl.

"Before I go into details, I have a little story to tell all of you about Nahuel. I trust that you remember the tale he discussed with you three years ago—how his mother was a human and his father was a vampire, which is the reason he is, or rather _was_, a half-breed. And I hope you remember the saddest part of the story, when he told you that his mother died and he was left to be taken care of by her sister, his aunt. As you all know, she was very concerned with how quickly he was growing.

What you are unaware of is, after seeing how fast he was growing, his aunt began trying to develop a..." he paused, thinking. "...medicine, if you will. It was meant to stop him from growing as quickly as he was—she was scared for the life of her nephew, the last remaining piece of her beloved sister. After years of hard work, she was finally successful—she had made a medicine that would slow down the growing process of half-breeds. He drank it once and it instantly slowed down the growing process until it was almost equal to that of a human. He aged slowly then, though it didn't matter much—by that time, it was almost time for him to stop growing completely.

Now to the point of my little story: we have the medicine here." He reached out his hand in a malicious manner, and Nahuel reluctantly placed a small bottle into it. Aro began studying the outside of it, turning it around as he examined the mysterious medicine. " We can wait for Nessie to be changed into a vampire, if you wish."

"But what does that solve? She could take the medicine, but she would still be living as a half-breed," Carlisle asked, his voice now calm again as he tried to figure out where Aro was going with this.

"Patience, my friend," Aro continued. "I am not done explaining this to you. Not only will she take the medicine, but she will also forget everything about her life in the vampire world. She will be raised human."

"And how will she forget everything she has ever known?" Esme asked quietly, her small, sweet voice barely above a whisper.

"Well you see, we have a new member of our coven. The one who you do not recognize is Matthew, the shield _and_ hypnotist of our group. As you can imagine, he is extremely useful when we hunt. We do not have to entice anyone anymore—all we have to do is send Matthew out to gather as many humans as we wish. His powers also work on vampires, but limitedly. They have to be willing to be hypnotized in order for it to work. Once they agree, he can make them do anything—even forget their entire past."

As the entire plan unfolded, all of my emotions drained from me due to the stress of the situation. I began thinking about what life would be like if we went through with it. What would it be like to have a daughter who couldn't remember anything about the first three years of her life? What would it be like to have a daughter who lived like I had, unaware of the fact that vampires and werewolves walked the earth? What would it be like to have daughter who grew up thinking she was normal when in fact she was the complete opposite?

"So you want Renesmee to drink the medicine, be willingly hypnotized by Matthew, and then live as a human the rest of her life?" Edward asked quietly and calmly.

"Only until she is eighteen, right around the time she should be fully grown," Aro corrected. "Naturally, at that time you are going to have to tell her who she really is—and then she will be changed into one of us. And she only has to be semi-willing, since she is not a full-vampire. All she has to know is that Matthew is going to hypnotize her, like a game. You do not have to tell her that he's going to make her forget everything she has ever known."

I watched as Edward shifted his gaze to the ground, his eyes intense as he entered a stage of deep thinking, trying to weigh the pros and cons of this proposal. It was silent for a few minutes as everyone thought about this plan. Finally, Edward spoke. "But what if she discovers who she truly is? What if we can't hide it from her?"

"Then you must immediately change her into one of us. Carlisle will have to come by periodically, so I may use my power to make certain that she has not discovered her true identity."

A ferocious growl escaped Caius as he whirled around to face Aro, outraged at this new proposal. "I thought we were going to change the girl! We agreed we were going to change her now! We…"

Aro held up a steady hand, silencing his friend. "Yes, that had been the plan. However, I now realize that the Cullen's are correct--we do not want to change the girl right now—she is far too young. This way, she is living in only one world, the human world, but will eventually be a part of our world."

Aro's voice was sympathetic and genuine, as if this truly was the best plan for our family. But it wasn't—the best plan for our family would be for them to leave us alone and to let Nessie live her entire life as a half-breed. There was no reason she had to be changed at all; she did nothing wrong.

Would she be different if she forgot everything about her life? Would she be the same girl that she had always been, that I thought she always would be? I longed to keep my Renesmee—the little girl who knew who she was, who we were. But I knew that no matter how hard we tried, we would never be able to convince the Volturi to let her stay the way she was.

Now it was time: I had a life-changing decision to make for my baby girl. Was I willing to let my daughter forget everything from the past three years in order to allow her from being changed into a vampire until she was in a sixteen-year-old's body? Was I willing to completely change our lives in order for her to grow up a little more before the inevitable happened?

I knew the answer was yes—I would do anything to keep my daughter from being changed into a vampire right now.

"Edward, Bella, what is your answer? Shall we change her now or wait a few years?"

Edward looked down at me, pain filling his eyes as they met mine. We gazed at each other, reading each other's thoughts without using the gift of mind reading. And I knew without a doubt that we had the same thought on our mind. The second that Edward realized this too, he broke my gaze, stifling a sob. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he said the words that were going to change our lives forever.

"We wait."

Edward gave Nessie the medicine, which she drank obediently. Matthew then sat Nessie down and told her that they were going to play a game. He asked her if she could be anything in the world, what would it be? She refused to tell her answer to Matthew—she did not like talking to people whom she did not know—so she whispered to Jacob instead. Ironically, she told him that she would be a real vampire, like Edward and me, so she would never have to eat human food again. Matthew told her that he could hypnotize her to think that she was a vampire, but then in ten minutes she would wake up and remember that she wasn't. She grew excited—she always loved games.

Right before he began, I wanted to hug the old Nessie goodbye, but I knew that if I did, she would become frightened. I clung tightly to Edward, giving my daughter reassuring smiles when she looked at me with her big brown eyes. Matthew did the entire hypnotism with an almost-silent whisper in her ear, first making her fall asleep and then completing the actual task. I was about to turn to Edward to inquire what he was telling her, but then realized that Matthew was a shield like me--Edward would not be able to read his thoughts.

Then it was complete. Nessie was still asleep and when she woke up tomorrow, she would have no idea who she was. We had to think of a story—Rosalie came up with the idea that she had gotten into a car accident, which would account for her lost memory. Then we quickly began packing some things we would need—we were moving to Alaska to live with the Denali, where Nessie would never realize how different we really were. I made sure I put the diary that we had gotten Nessie for her sixth birthday in my purse—on the plane, I would rip any pages out that had anything to do with her old life. I didn't want to get rid of it entirely; I knew it might help her if she is able to read some of the things she had written and to be able to write in it now.

We put the boxes in our cars and drove to the airport, leaving behind the perfect life I had known for the past three years, the life I had never dreamed I would be forced to abandon


	5. Chapter Four

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**"The truth is rarely pure and never simple."**

**-Oscar Wilde**

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This Diary is for

our darling daughter,

Renesmee Carlie Cullen

"Nessie"

Who lights up our lives,

even in our darkest days.

Never give up hope,

for the world became a brighter place

the moment you were born.

Always remember how much we love you.

Love always.

Mom and Dad

Dear Diary,

Daddy and Mommy told me that I should write in you because it might make me feel better. They said I used to write in you all the time. I wish I could remember when they gave you to me. They said it was on my sixth birthday which means it was more than a year ago because I am seven now. They also said that I had been very excited when I opened you. I can see why because you are very beautiful. I have read some of your pages and it seems like I had a happy life. The only thing I am upset about is that there are pages ripped out of it. Did I do that? I am so sorry if I did. I hope it did not hurt too badly. I wonder what caused me to tear out some of your pages. Maybe I had written something mean about someone and then decided that I liked them again. I might be able to find the pages if I look around my room.

Alice

Aunt Alicia seems very nice. She's Daddy's sister and has been over every day telling me about my life. Her husband Uncle Jasper seems nice too. When I get frustrated about not remembering anything he gives me a hug and makes me feel a lot better. I also love Aunt Rosie. She is the most beautiful person I have ever seen in my life. At least I think she's the most beautiful person I have ever seen in my life.

Emmett

Uncle Emmest is really nice too. He's Daddy's brother and Aunt Rosie's husband. He's very strong. I bet he could lift a car with one hand!

Diary, I am very confused right now. I hope that I remember soon. Please help me remember Dairy. I don't want Mommy and Daddy to think I've forgotten them. I know that I loved them very much before my accident and I love them now too for taking care of me. I just really wish I could remember them.

My whole family is going to play board games right now so I have to go. I will write in you again soon.

Love,

Nessee

Nessie

Dear Diary,

I just finished eating dinner. Mommy and Daddy didn't eat and my aunts, uncles, and grandparents didn't either. I guess once you are older, you don't have to eat anymore. I can't wait until I'm that age. I really don't like food. Nothing tastes good to me but I don't tell Mommy and Daddy that. If I ate before my accident I want to eat now too. Playing board games was really fun yesterday. Everyone had to explain the rules of my favorite games because I couldn't remember them. But I had a lot of fun. Daddy is going to read me a book now. I am glad I have been writing in you every day. It makes me feel a lot better. I promise I will write in you tomorrow.

Love,

Nessie

Dear Diary,

I'm sorry I haven't written to you in a few years. I am now sixteen years old—I guess it has been about three years since my last entry. Sorry about that.

Diary, something huge is happening. We are moving. I know—I was shocked too. But I'm also really excited. I get to go to a real school and be with real people, other than my family. And get this: we are moving right by Jake! So I will get to see him every single day instead of four or five times a month. I really miss him; he's like the big brother I've always wanted. Plus, I have a crush on him—but that's a different matter that I do not have the time to discuss with you. I promise I will fill you in on everything. The town we are going to be living in is Port Angeles which is in Washington. I think it's about an hour away from Jakey. I hope he still wants to hang out with me once I'm living near him. He probably has tons of other friends that he wants to spend time with more than me. Oh well, I can make other friends as well.

My aunts, uncles, and grandparents are moving with us, which will be amazing. I love my family so much—they are always there for me.

Well, I have to go pack now. We're leaving in three days! I promise I will write in you again soon!

Love,

Nessie

**Chapter Four**

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**Renesmee**

Secrets—I firmly believe that no good can come from them. They only lead to anger, heartache, and betrayal. They bring people together just as quickly as they tear people apart. Most kids experience secrets with their friends—whispering in the hallway, passing notes in class. There's that amazing feeling that you get when you know something that someone else doesn't and then there's that dreadful feeling that you get when the situation is reversed.

There's one place in the world where a kid can go and feel like there are no secrets. Home. Family. Where everybody knows everything; everything about both the past and present. Some people argue, saying that they have a lot of secrets from their parents, but those are not the secrets I'm talking about. Sure you're not going to tell your parents about how drunk you got last weekend or how far you went with your boyfriend. Sure you're not going to tell your siblings how much they mean to you and that you could never bear to lose them. These things are not the secrets that bother me—the secrets I'm talking about simple, but absolutely life changing.

Unlike most kids my age, my family is full of secrets. Secrets that they cannot bear to keep anymore. Secrets that I cannot bear to have withheld anymore. I would do anything to find out the things my family knows. Well, almost anything. The only thing I would never do is probably the most logical thing to do: ask. It's not like I haven't tried before. I can recall many times that I had worked up a day's full of courage, just to go up to my parents and demand to know what was going on. However, just like I knew I would, I always chickened out. But what was I afraid of? My parent's reaction? I don't really care for confrontation, but even if they got mad, I think I could handle it. How to ask the questions? For some reason, I have never been able to explain myself well, but I think I could word it correctly. Not getting the question answered? Maybe that wouldn't be such a disappointment. See the thing I'm afraid of is actually getting the answer. What if it was something that I couldn't handle? I know for a fact that the answers to the questions I long to ask are not simple. I know for a fact that the answers to the questions I long to ask are scary. I know for a fact that the answers to the questions I long to ask are life-changing.

I have known these things for a fact since I was little. These secrets have everything to do with me, everything to do with my past, present, and future. To not know a major part of my life is frustrating beyond belief. My entire family can see that it tears me up inside. They can see that it's all I can think about. They can see that even though I do not ask the questions, I want them answered. And yet, my entire family does nothing about it.

It is true that secrets are harder for me accept than for other people. It would make sense for it to be normal for a person who cannot remember a major part of his or her life to despise secrets. When I was seven, I was in a major car accident and went into a coma. When I awoke, I was in a strange house. I couldn't remember my name, where I lived, or anything else about my life. Being seven years old, I did not completely understand what was going on or why it was happening to me. I did not understand who the doctor was who was taking care of me. I did not understand who the man and woman were who were holding my hand and kissing me. I did not understand who the other people were who came through the house, checking up on me. They kept telling me that the doctor was my grandfather, that the man and woman were my parents, and that the other people were my aunts, uncles, and my grandmother. They kept telling me these things, but I couldn't believe them. How could these people supposedly be so important to me, when I could not remember them?

I recalled that week of recovery literally as if it happened yesterday. I suppose if you're missing seven years of your life, you have a lot more room in your brain to remember other things. My family kept telling me stories about my past, how I had grown up in Phoenix, Arizona and how we moved to Juneau, Alaska when I was four. This appeared to be a reasonable story to me at the time, but now I look back on it and wonder if it was the truth. I don't doubt that I was born in Arizona, and I don't doubt that we were citizens of Alaska during my coma. The time that we moved is the only thing that I question. After looking back on it, I had this feeling that we hadn't lived in Alaska for three years—it seemed as if we had just arrived. Although mostly everything was neat and orderly, there seemed to be some boxes throughout the house that still needed to be unpacked--and the next day, there containments were put away and the boxes thrown in the trash. I cannot imagine that it took my family three years to unpack those boxes. And while they thought I was asleep, I heard my parents discussing things that needed to be done such as changing driver's licenses, license plates, and identification cards. Why in the world would they need to change those things all of a sudden?

It took me nine years to realize all of that. Nine years. Even though I heard, saw, and clearly remembered it, I never thought anything of it. I supposed my parent's weird behavior and the unpacked boxes were never really important to me—that is, until just a year ago, when I was sixteen years old, and we made our life changing move to Port Angeles, Washington.

The only thing I know for certain is that the key to everything lies in what happened during the first seven years of my life.


	6. Chapter Five

**Chapter Five**

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**Bella**

It was three in the afternoon and I was sitting at home, enjoying the last few moments of my alone time. Edward, Alice, Esme, and Jasper had all gone hunting for the day. Usually we hunted as a family, but Carlisle had to work and the others had nothing to do today. I had not been in the mood, so I told Carlisle that I would go with him sometime within the next few days.

I heard the door open, and I turned around to see that Nessie was home from school. She had an armload of books, although I knew that she would not be studying from them. Due to the fact that the "medicine" that she took only slowed her physical growth down and had no effect on her intellectual growth, she was very advanced for her age. She even took honors level classes, but they did not seem to be challenging enough. Edward constantly encouraged her brilliance, expressing his wishes wanting her to go into even higher level classes, honors classes that seniors would take. However, Nessie always refused, saying that she was content in the classes that she was currently in. I figured she just wanted to try to blend in at school as much as she could—she didn't want to be regarded as someone who was much smarter than everyone else. I always smiled when I recalled this; she was exactly like me, not wanting to be the center of attention.

"Hey, Mom," she greeted me quietly.

"Hey, Ness. How was school?"

She shrugged, setting her books down on the floor as she stripped her coat and shoes. "It was okay, I suppose."

When she turned around to put her coat in the closet, I frowned. She hardly ever told me anything about school or her friends. I wished I could disregard it as the behavior of normal teenagers, that it was just a phase of which she would eventually grow out. However, I knew this was not true. Nessie was not a typical seventeen-yes-old—she was far more mature than her peers. I knew the reason that she did not want to talk about school or her friends was the fact that she wasn't as happy as she wanted to be. Before we moved here, all Nessie dreamed about was going to a real high school and having real friends. But once we arrived, she realized that it was not everything that she had dreamed of, that she was too different from the kids in her school.

This was completely understandable; I had always figured it to be similar to a college student trying to go to high school and have high school friends—even though they could do it with ease, they would not be happy. Nessie did not have the patience to deal with people far younger in emotional years, although she did not understand why. However, I knew that she was always nice to everyone and that she even sat with some kids at lunch in an attempt to be normal. But, seeming to have a predilection for not socializing, she always politely refused to spend time with them outside of school.

Even though I knew she had good reasoning behind her lack of socializing, I still found myself growing angry with her. The whole reason we moved to Washington was in order for her to have a normal life, so that she could experience being a real teenager. When she refused to have friends outside of school, it was as if our move was a waste. And if I, the girl who hardly ever socialized in high school, felt like this, I was certain Edward felt ten times worse.

When I had first suggested the idea of moving back to Washington, he had been angry. Although he had not said so to me, I knew he had wondered why I had this seemingly frivolous desire to turn our lives upside down simply so Nessie could go to high school. After a few minutes of assertive persuading on my part, he had eventually realized that it was a good idea and sincerely wanted to go through with it.

As Nessie went upstairs with her books, I recalled the day when I had announced to everyone that I wanted us to move back to Washington. We had all been sitting at Carlisle and Esme's house, spending time with one another as we did every night. After a week of practicing a well-thought out speech, I had finally felt ready to unveil a suggestion for one of the biggest changes in our lives that we had seen in years.

* * *

This was not New Hampshire. This was not Edward, Alice, Emmett, Jasper, Rosalie and I going to Dartmouth together. This was not Carlisle saving lives at a hospital right near the campus. This was not being careful when the sun came out. This was not the way everything was supposed to turn out.

This was Alaska. This was my little girl, overtaken by amnesia, confused beyond belief. This was her forgetting who we were, who she was. This was seven years of secrets and lies, of completely secluding ourselves from the real world. This was a family who was still together, but completely hurt by the pain of having to hide who we truly were from someone who had every right to know.

This was over.

I stood in front of the entire family, excluding Nessie, who fast asleep at our house next door. I had only one thing on my mind—the very thing I was going to do anything I could to make possible.

"I want to move back to Washington," I said firmly.

Jaws dropped. Eyes widened.

"You want to what?" Edward growled softly.

"I want to move back to Washington," I repeated, with even more force behind my request.

Suddenly Emmett burst into a fit of booming laughter. Usually, I loved his risible personality, but right now it was causing anger to flow through me. He stopped instantly when he realized that this was as far from a joke as possible, immediately furrowing his eyebrows with confusion as he attempted to perceive this notion. "Bella, you've got to be kidding."

"I've been thinking about this for a long time, so I would appreciate if everyone would hear me out before they say anything," I declared, making eye contact with everyone around me. I looked at Edward for a second longer than I had with everyone else, my eyes warning him not to interrupt me. I took a deep breath, ready to begin the speech I had been practicing in my head for the past week.

"Please don't get me wrong: living in Alaska has been nice. We have all gotten to go to college together. Carlisle has a nice job pretty close to home. To be honest, when we moved here I had not thought anything would work out—I was completely miserable. But I wanted to stay strong for Nessie.

Which brings me to the reason behind my seemingly insane request: Renesmee Carlie Cullen. No one can deny how strong she has been through this entire ordeal. I cannot even begin to imagine what it would be like to wake up and discover that I could not remember anything about my life.

Nessie has been an amazing daughter, niece, and granddaughter. And now I am asking that we give her something back—I want to move back to Washington. Going to a real school, having real friends, and being a part of the real world is the only thing Nessie has ever wanted. All of you can see this, even though she never mentions it. She obsesses over those teenage fiction books. She wants to be a part of a world that she once belonged to, but has no recollection of. I want her to go to a real school, make real friends, to have a real life. And the only way she can do that is if we move."

I took another deep breath and closed my eyes, thankful I was done with my opening speech but knowing it wasn't over—the hard part was about to come, an interrogation I was hoping I would not have to face.

"Are you finished, Bella?" Carlisle asked gently in the fatherly manner to which he was so accustomed.

I hesitated before nodding, suddenly wishing that I had not started this discussion. I knew many of them were not going to be happy with this radical idea of mine that I had held on to so passionately. But I also knew that I had to do this for my daughter—my darling girl who deserved to be truly happy.

"First of all thank you for your lovely speech—I can tell that you have put a lot of thought into this," Carlisle began, his voice as calm and rational as always. "Now, I would like to say that I think your idea is a very good one. Even without her telling us, we all know that Nessie wants to move. But Bella, what you might be looking past is the question of how normal would her life be if we moved. She would certainly realize the moment we got there that we are not normal."

I took another deep breath as I recalled my argument to this valid point that I had known was going to be brought up. "Yes, I realize that. But I think we can work past it. You know more than anyone how strong our family is. And Nessie trusts every single one of us—I truly think that if we tell her not to worry about anything she grows concerned with, she will push it to the back of her mind. I believe we can handle it."

Carlisle nodded, taking in my explanation. I looked around the room—everyone else was pondering this thought as well. It stayed silent for a few minutes as everyone decided whether this would be the right thing to do for our family. Emmett was the first to speak. "I think it's a great idea," he stated boldly.

"Me too," Alice agreed.

One by one, everyone else confirmed that they thought it was a good idea as well. Finally, everyone turned to Edward, who had yet to say anything. I smiled at this irony—usually, it was Rosalie we had to turn to in order to get her opinion on the discussion. I thought back to the time when Edward had grown angry at this. Now, we were turning to a silent Edward, wondering what his vote would be—the vote would count more than anyone else's.

Edward sighed, giving us a small smile. "I agree as well. I would love for Nessie to go to a real school. What part of Washington were you thinking?"

Before I answered, I walked over to him and threw my arms around him, hugging him tightly. I rolled my eyes when I heard Emmett whispering to Rosalie, making fun of us. Then I turned back to everyone and explained that I wanted to move to Port Angeles so that we could be near Jacob but away from Forks, where people would recognize us. To my amazement, everyone agreed once again and we immediately began making plans. I smiled at my family, ecstatic by their decision—we were officially moving back to Washington.

* * *

For some reason, this memory always made me a little sad. I had been so naive back then. I supposed I had been more then correct—Nessie never even asked one question about why we were so different. We should be ecstatic about this; we never had to lie to her. But I knew, deep down, that in reality, we were lying to her. We were withholding information; we were refusing to tell her who she really was. And in my opinion, that was the worst thing two parents could do to their child.


	7. Chapter Six

**Chapter Six**

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**Renesmee**

Port Angeles, Washington: home of—absolutely nothing. Some people would argue that it was a huge step up from living in Juneau, Alaska, but I don't know if I would agree. You see, by moving to Port Angeles, Washington, my family exposed a whole new world to me. A world where parents looked much older than their kids. A world where everybody ate. A world where the majority of people were average-looking. A world which was not my own.

Growing up in seclusion, I had never realized how peculiar my family really was. How could you know that adults were supposed to grow when the only adults you were around never aged a day? How could you know adults were supposed to eat when the only adults you were around never ate a bite? How could you know the general appearance of an ordinary person when the adults you were around were all excruciatingly beautiful? How could you know what you've never seen or even heard of?

Lunch, normally the best part of a teenager's day, was the bane of my existence. For some reason, I chose to sit with the least intellectual people in the entire school—Sarah Smith, Matt Yotzi, Josh Greene, Caitlin Reed, and Rachel Libry, also known as the 'rich kids.' Their clothes, haircuts, and cell phones were only surpassed by their ability to flaunt it all. The only reason they even spoke to me was because they knew my family had money, though I was certain they realized by now that my buying of anything was nothing short of sporadic. I never really cared about my family's wealth: what good was cash when you lived how I did before I moved here—basically in a cult-like kind of seclusion, cut off from the entire world.

As usual, they were busy discussing what they had done over the weekend. Rachel and Sarah had gone shopping. Josh, Matt, and Caitlin had had gone to see a horror movie. All five of them went to an amusement park. Naturally, I wasn't invited to any of it. It truly didn't bother me though—it was my fault for rebuffing every single invitation they ever gave me. For some reason, I didn't find shopping, movies, amusement parks, and other "normal teenage things" fun; frankly, I found it all rather childish and boring. I tried hanging out with other kids outside of school, but I was always dismal. Nobody grew angry with me, however—they just stopped inviting me places. Even hearing them talk about what they had done didn't make me feel left out; I was just grateful to have people to sit with at lunch.

The fact that I did not like to hang out with other kids was definitely a classic example of pure, dreadful irony. If you knew me in Alaska you would know that being a normal teenager was something I always dreamed of, always yearned for. The only ounce of life in the outside world I received was through books—we never watched movies or television. One of my favorite types of books were ones that my parents despised, but allowed me to read anyway—teenage novels. I studied them religiously—how the characters acted, what it was like to in high school, what it was like to actually have friends. I then began secretly obsessing over wanting to be normal, like the characters in the book. However, I still didn't know how far from normal I truly was. I wasn't reading picture books—I had never seen another adult besides my family. The books never outright said that adults were supposed to eat, sleep, and grow older. I still assumed that the only thing that made my family not normal was the fact that we lived apart from everyone else.

So imagine my surprise when my mother told me that we were going to be moving to Port Angeles, Washington. I would be going to a real school and be hanging out with people my own age—something I hadn't done since we had moved to Alaska. During the weeks before the move, I started planning exactly what I was going to do when I finally fulfilled my dream of becoming a normal teenager. My parents encouraged me, telling me how much fun I was going to have hanging out with all of the new friends I was going to make.

I clearly remember that immediately after I moved to Washington, everyone began asking me what it was like to live in Alaska. I would tell them the basics—the temperature, how we dressed, and the different kinds of animals. I would also attempt to explain to them, with little success, that the majority of the population were _not_ Eskimos. But the truth was that those four things were basically all I knew about living there. My life in Alaska was...different, to say the least. I was raised not only by my parents, but by my aunts, uncles, and grandparents as well. And as pathetic as it was, I didn't have any friends. None. But it wasn't my fault—the only people, other than my family, that I socialized with were our close family friends, Aunt Tanya, Aunt Kate, Aunt Carmen, and Uncle Eleazar. They weren't really related to us, but we were all very close to them. They had many similar characteristics to my family—they didn't eat, they didn't sleep, and they didn't grow older. They also had the same golden eyes, the same pale complexion, and the same cold skin. So naturally, I assumed that all adults held these traits. It wasn't that I was stupid—thanks to my weird cult of a family, I honestly just didn't know.

Josh's hand waving in my face interrupted my thoughts. "Nessie?"

"Yes?" I asked shyly, surprised he was speaking to me. Usually, everybody just left me alone, consumed in my thoughts and my wishes that I was sure were worn as clear as a stamp on my forehead.

He rolled his eyes in an amused annoyance. "I asked you a question."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't hear you."

"Do you know anything about the new kid?"

"What new kid?" I smiled apologetically, not knowing what he was talking about.

He sighed with frustration. "Him." I almost grimaced as he pointed to the other side of the cafeteria. This was exactly why I greatly disliked people at this school—they had no manners. I was practically raised in the wild and I knew how uncivilized pointing was.

I looked over to where he was indicating. Sitting with a horde of football players was a boy, seemingly one or two years older than me. He looked out of place sitting where he was, but he didn't seem to mind. Though he had a tray of fries in front of him, it appeared that he hadn't eaten much. Only a few times did he say something to his lunch companions, who seemed barley aware that he was sitting there.

And he was absolutely gorgeous. His dark colored hair was the polar opposite of his pale complexion, but complimented it well. It reminded me of Aunt Rosalie's skin—absolutely flawless, resembling a marble statue. His tight shirt exposed his sleek muscles—not too bulky, but slim and athletic, flattering his slender build.

As I become conscious of how long I had been staring, I turned back to Josh. "I've…I've never seen him before."

"He's so cute…" Caitlin sighed dreamily. Normally I would deem her reaction as petty teenage conduct, but this time I couldn't help but agree.

"He's nothing. Look how stupid he looks sitting with Dan and those other guys," Matt said, a hint of jealousy in his voice. He was used to having all of the girls obsess over him; now all of the girls in the school would be focusing on this new boy.

"He's even paler than you, Cullen," Josh snickered.

I blushed, shying my eyes toward the cold cafeteria tile. "I guess he is."

Caitlin sighed, still gawking at him. "Oh, I can't wait to talk to him. What if we started dating? We would look so cute together!"

"Yeah right! He'd date me over you any day," Rachel laughed, glaring at her 'best friend,' with a look that told the world that she would betray Caitlin for a boy in a heartbeat.

Sarah smirked in her typical condescending fashion. "At least we know one thing—he'll never date Nessie." Even though she was smiling, the cruelty in her voice was as apparent as if she had slapped me in the face.

Of course, lions always hunted in pairs when going after the weakest gazelle--Rachel was no nicer. "Yeah she's right. You're so pathetic, Nessie. If he fell for you, you'll give him your heartbreaking 'I don't date' speech, like you do to every poor guy in this school."

"Oh yeah," I replied softly, reminding myself that they were spoiled brats and I did not need to get upset by what they said.

"Harsh, guys," Josh snapped.

"You okay, Nessie?" Matt asked sweetly.

I forced a weak but apparent smile on my face, not wanting the girls to get pleasure out of upsetting me. "Yeah, thanks."

Caitlin, Rachel, and Sarah did their trademark unison scowl and immediately began whispering to each other about something, most likely me. I glanced over at the boy again, but quickly spun around when I saw he was looking back. Did he know that we were talking about him? I could feel my face heat up with embarrassment.

"He's staring at us," Caitlin whispered, taking it more as flattery than as being creepy.

"No, he's staring at Nessie," Josh corrected.

Caitlin rolled her eyes and turned back toward Rachel and Sarah, who had not looked up from their cruel conversation about some girl with glasses who sat alone at the end of our table.

I glanced helplessly at Josh. "Why is he staring at me?"

"How am I supposed to know?" A wide grin suddenly appeared on his usually rough face, lighting up his eyes with a boyish excitement. "Want me to go punch him for you?"

"No!" I exclaimed softly.

Caitlin suddenly slammed her hands onto the table, leaning forward so she could whispered to us. "I think he's coming over here!" she squealed.

Feeling my stomach churn, I immediately looked down at my sandwich. I wished more than anything that I could disappear. "Please don't come over, please don't come over, please don't come over," I thought pleadingly.

But, of course, it did no good. "Hello," I heard a deep, perfect voice say.

"Hi," everyone at the table replied. The others began talking again while Caitlin and I looked up at the boy.

Caitlin was the first to speak. "Are you new here?" She giggled, flipping her hair the way those conceited girls in movies did when they flirted with a guy. I wished the bell would ring--I did not believe I would be able to hold down my lunch after being forced to watch this scene of horrible teenage behavior.

"Yeah, first day," he said smoothly. Then to my dismay, he turned to me. "I couldn't help but notice your ring."

I glanced down at the plain band on my finger. It was silver and worn with age, nothing special. My father had given it to me when I had turned thirteen. I had worn it gratefully, but had never truly cared for it. "Oh. It was a gift from my father. I think it was his grandfather's."

"I have one just like it. Do you know the history behind it?"

I shook my head and he immediately sat down in the empty chair next to me.

"Well, legend says that during the Civil War, people got all freaked out about mythological creatures—vampires, werewolves, those kinds of things. Businessmen figured it was a great way to make money. They began making and selling those rings, telling people that a single touch to the skin of a beast would destroy them. It was a pretty good scam if you ask me."

"Really? My father never told me that story." I pulled the ring off my finger to examine--to me, it still appeared plain and ordinary. However, with this history I had just learned of it, it made it seem as if there was something more--it too held secrets. And as with all secrets, I had a yearning in my soul to find out exactly what they were.

"You hold onto that. It's a real treasure." He smiled and I felt my heart flutter.

When I looked up at him, I noticed for the first time his exquisite eyes. Although they were a plain brown color, there was something about them that was absolutely exquisite. They seemed to literally draw me in, making me want to get closer to him just so I could continue looking into them. The ring of the lunch bell brought me back to reality and my cheeks once again flushed with embarrassment when I realized I had been staring.

"What class do you have next?" he asked.

"Honors American history," I groaned. "My least favorite class of the day."

His perfect smile grew. "I have honors history too. Would you like to walk together?"

"Sure," I smiled shyly, picking up my books. "So how has your first day been?"

He laughed, a beautiful sound that caused the girls who were already staring at us to turn to their friends and whisper with a giddy giggle. "Extremely boring. A lot of pointing and staring from the other kids."

"I know how you feel. I was new here last year."

"Really? Where did you move from?"

I sighed. "I'll tell you if you swear not to laugh."

"I won't," he promised.

"Okay, well I came from…" I paused, dreading having to say the final embarrassing word. "…Alaska."

Just as everyone's else in this stupid school, his eyes instantly grew wide. "Are you serious?"

"Oh, please don't make fun of me," I pleaded with a slight giggle. "I hate telling people where I'm from."

"No, no, no, you don't understand. This is so weird: I moved here from Alaska as well."

I stopped dead in my tracks and stared at him. "You're lying."

He laughed and the angelic quality of the sound made me question if I was dreaming. I almost started laughing as well—I had only known this boy for ten minutes and already he was bringing out poetic qualities in me that I didn't even know I had.

"No, I'm serious," he continued forcefully. "I lived in Kotlik."

"I lived in Juneau." I grinned, trying to fight the urge to jump up and down in excitement, something I never typically even _think_ about doing. Finally, I had found someone besides the members of my family who could somewhat relate to me.

"Capitol. Nice."

"So you really moved here from Alaska? That's so weird—two penguin-lovers in the same school."

He raised his eyebrow as amusement washed over his entire face. "Penguin-lover?"

"Ah, they must not know you're from Alaska yet. Brace yourself—you're going to be called penguin-lover, Eskimo, snowman…"

His laugh gave me chills because of how beautiful and perfect it was. I recalled Jacob's laugh, which was big and booming, rough and amazing—not perfect, but that was how laughs were supposed to be.

"Pathetic names, I know," I continued, somehow finding the courage to do so. "You might not want to mention where you're from. They'll basically eat you alive."

He tilted his head at that last part and gave me a questioning expression. Maybe he had never heard of that phrase before, although I could not see why not—it was pretty common.

"My name's Nicholas Hayfield, by the way. Nick, if you prefer." He extended his left hand for some odd reason, but I did not question it--maybe in the part of Alaska he grew up in, that was how a person greeted another.

"I'm Renesmee Cullen." I spoke with a confidence I did not know I had as I extended my left hand as well. "Nessie, if you prefer," I added quickly.

"Renesmee? Renesmee." He spoke my name a few times, getting used to the sound of it. "That's different," he finally said. "Very beautiful."

"It's the combination of my mother's…wait, my mother's mom…no, wait my father's…my mother's dad, Renée…my father's mom Esme…"

He laughed once more. "I think I got it. It's a combination of your mother's mom, Renée and your father's mom, Esme. Right?"

I nodded slowly, wanting to die. For the third time since I had gazed upon Nick, I felt the blood run to my cheeks, turning them a betraying shade of scarlet red which let the whole world know that I was embarrassed. Why couldn't I explain anything without sounding like a complete idiot?

However, his intriguing smile made me forget what had just happened. "That explains the uniqueness of it. Renesmee. Nessie. I like it."

We reached history class just as the tardy bell rang. I quickly took my seat and Nicholas sat in the empty chair next to me. I smiled shyly; I liked Nicholas a lot. He had the potential to be my only real friend in the entire school.

Class was long and boring, as usual. When the final bell of the day rang, it felt as if I could not get out of the room fast enough. I waited outside of the door for Nicholas, who was talking with the teacher about the course.

When he came out of the classroom, he looked surprised to see me. "Thanks for waiting."

"No problem. So how do you like Mr. Opal?" I asked him as we started walking in the now deserted hallway.

"He's okay. Better than a lot of the teachers I have."

"Which are?"

He rattled off his other seven teachers and I gave him advice on some of them. He not only listened politely to what I had to say, he seemed engrossed.

He suddenly stopped walking and looked at me. "Hey, Nessie, I was wondering: did you want to go to the library to study? I really need help catching up in history. I've taken the class before at my other school, but I can't remember half of the stuff you guys have been learning."

"Sure, I can help you. I just need to call my parents."

"Thanks—I really appreciate it. I have to go to my locker. Meet you here in five minutes?"

I nodded before he scurried back inside. I pulled out my cell phone and dialed my father's number, praying that I wouldn't have to go into a fifteen minute interrogation session.

"Hi, sweetheart," he answered.

"Hey, Daddy. I was wondering if I can go to the library to study."

"By yourself?"

And there it began—why couldn't he just give me an answer without having to ask a million questions?

"Well, no. With my friend…"

"Who is your friend?" he asked suspiciously.

"He's just this kid..."

"He?" he interrupted.

I sighed. "Yes, Dad, _he_'s this kid in my history class. _He_ just moved here and _he_ needs some help catching up."

"Alright…" he acquiesced. "Be back by six."

"Thanks, Dad. I love you."

"Love you too, Ness."

Nick returned to me a few minutes later. As pathetic as it was, I analyzed his every god-like step. His walk was slow and perfect—he had the perfect posture, the prefect stride, the perfect everything.

"Did they say yes?" he asked as he reached me.

I nodded, unable to speak for I was still in awe that he was talking to me. I felt out of place standing next to him, as if he was too beautiful to even have average eyes gaze upon him. I found myself smiling at this—I had never felt this way about anyone. When I first moved to Washington, a bunch of guys had asked me out, but I had never felt like any of them were right for me. But with Nick—there was just something about him that made him completely irresistible.

He grinned, probably noticing that I was staring again. Only this time, I didn't care. I wanted him to know that I was looking at him. I wanted him to see what was in my eyes—infatuation that I knew I could not break even if he decided I was not the girl for him.

"Should you drive or should I?" he asked, gazing into my eyes as if he really didn't know what he had just asked.

I smiled shyly at the attention, looking down at the ground as my hair fell past my cheeks. "Well, I guess you. I only have my permit."

"Really? What grade are you in?"

"Junior; I'm seventeen. I hadn't gotten my permit until a few months ago. What grade are you in?"

"Senior."

"Lucky. You graduate soon."

He laughed as we started walking outside into yet another dismal day. "I guess. I don't really know what I want to do after high school though. My parents want me to be a doctor, but I don't know if that's what I really want. I mean, I want to make them happy but…"

"Oh," I said simply, not being able to relate to this. I had never really considered what I wanted to do after graduation, nor did my parents ever bring it up.

"What about you? Do your parents want you to be anything in particular?"

"Not really," I admitted with a slight shrug.

"So they're the kind of parents that say 'be whatever you want to be' and other things such as that?"

"They're not really like that either. We don't really talk about those kinds of things, the future and everything."

He sighed. "Now _that_ would be nice. I wish I could go one day without them saying something about grades or college or a job," he stopped, a small smile on his face. I tore my gaze from his perfect face, suddenly realizing that we were at his parking spot. I gasped as I looked to what we stopped in front of. In the spot was his car—or rather, his motorcycle.

"Wow," was all I could manage to say.

"Do you like it? It's brand new," he said, walking around the gleaming bike to examine it.

"Wow," I repeated. "It's amazing." It was honestly the nicest motorcycle I had ever seen in my life, not that I had seen very many.

"Would your parents mind if you rode on it?" he asked, continuing to admire his prized possession as his eyes gleamed with excitement. It was as if he had just gotten it that minute—what was it with guys and motorcycles? He bent down to the ground, examining the bottom of the machine without pressing his fingers to it.

"Of course, but that's why I'm not going to tell them," I giggled.

He frowned, glancing up at me, his eyes somehow more beautiful than before. I think it was because one tiny ray of sunlight had escaped from the gray prison it was constantly entrapped in. I titled my head, studying Nick—in that one ray of sunlight, he almost seemed to glow. "Are you sure? I don't want you to get in trouble."

"Do you have an extra helmet?"

"Yeah." He pulled one out of the box on the back of the bike. "Here are some gloves too--it's going to be a pretty cold ride."

"Thanks," I said, grabbing both of the objects he held in his hand. He jumped on the motorcycle, or death machine as my father would call it, and I slid on after him, wrapping my gloved hands around his waist.

He around turned to look at me. "Ready?"

I nodded reluctantly. Maybe this was not such a good idea. I had never been on a motorcycle before…

But he sped off before I could contemplate the negatives of the situation I was currently in. The feeling was amazing. We were speeding past cars, easily moving around them. I wished I could take my helmet off and feel the wind through my hair, but I thought better of it; if I were to be caught by my father and he found out that I failed to wear a helmet, I would be wishing that I had died in a motorcycle accident.

"This is amazing!" I shrieked above the wind.

He laughed, which I could still hear, even with the blowing wind. I let out a disappointed sigh when we finally reached the library; I did not want the ride to end. I jumped off, shaking with excitement.

"_That_ was the coolest thing I have ever done in my life."

"You really don't get out much, do you, Nessie Cullen?"

I smiled shyly as I took off the helmet and gloves. "Not really."

"Well, so you don't get grounded forever, take a shower right when you get home before your parents notice the gasoline smell."

"Will do."

As he looked at me and smiled, I felt my heart flutter again. He probably thought I was such a loser—he rode on motorcycles all day long while I sat at home and watched reruns of 'I Love Lucy' with my mother. Maybe I wouldn't have a friend after all—I was sure he would abandon me once he figured out how incredibly not cool I was.

"How did you know how to get here?" I whispered as we walked into the library.

"I used to visit this town every year. My grandpa had a condo here."

"Oh, I bet that was fun to stay in, with the rain and constant clouds."

"Yeah," he whispered, as if he had not picked up on my sarcasm. When we reached a table, he quickly stepped in front of me, pulling my chair out before I sat down.

"Thank you," I said, trying to hide the shock in my voice. It wasn't everyday that you met a guy with actual manners—something my parents had instilled in me since the day I was born.

I pulled my books out of my messenger bag and began flipping through my notes, explaining each page to him thoroughly.

"What does that say?" he asked, pointing to one of the sentences. As he pulled away, his hand brushed the side of my arm, sending a tingle down my spine.

I almost squealed with delight. Our hands touched!

Wait. Our hands touched.

Cold. His hand was ice cold. Pale skin, beautiful eyes, cold body temperature. There was no way...

Or was there?

No. There was no way.

I firmly decided to ignore these facts and for once pretend that I was not completely insane.

"Are you okay?" He stared at me, apparently concerned.

I quickly snapped back into reality. "What? Oh yeah I'm fine." I continued explaining everything to him, unsuccessfully trying to not think about what I had just realized.

Pale skin.

Beautiful eyes.

Cold body temperature.

There was something strange going on, and I was never more determined to find out what it was.


	8. HELP wrong chapter mssg me please

**Sorry I haven't written for awhile. Please read and review if you can!**

**Thanks :)**

****I do not own the characters****

CHAPTER SEVEN

James grabbed Lily's hand and pulled her out of the Common Room, where they walked outside into the hallway, emptied for supper, to find Remus, Sirius, and Peter sitting on a windowsill waiting for them. As their eyes lit up at the sight of James and Lily's clasped hands, they looked like three little boys, waiting for their father to get home to take them on a fishing trip.

"Finally! Six years too late!" Sirius cheered, throwing up his hands in exasperation. "You don't know how much I've had to hear this bloke go on and on about how much he loves you and wants to win you back, Evans. Slowly driving me insane, that's what he was doing."

Lily laughed. "Did Sirius plan this with you?" she asked James.

"Now that you're one of us, you gotta start using the nicknames. It kills me to hear the name Remus." James made a face after he said his friend's name, and Remus shoved him playfully.

"This," James continued, clasping his hands on Sirius' shoulders, who grinned handsomely. "Is Padfoot." He then moved onto Remus. "This is Mooney." Finally, he pushed Peter forward, who blushed shyly and raised a chubby hand. "This is Wormtail. And I," he stepped forward valiantly and gave a charming smile. "Am Prongs."

Sirius shook his head. "Oy, Prongs...she doesn't even know why we call each other that."

Lily shifted uncomfortably. "Well I know why you use one of the names. I...well, I figured it out." She lifted her gaze to meet Remus', and he expelled a horrified groan.

"Oh, man, that's all I need, someone other than you figuring it out and telling the whole school. Can you imagine the outrage?"

"That's not going to happen, Mooney," James replied calmly. "That's why we go to great lengths to keep it a secret."

The look of appreciation in Remus' eyes as he looked toward James and the others was not just one of simple gratitude—it seemed that his entire happiness rested in the hands of his friends.

"Is...is it hard? Being a..." she asked uneasily.

With a shrug, Remus forced a smile. "You get used to it. Dumbledore has been great about it—having the Whomping Willow planted and everything. Great guy, that Dumbledore is..."

"So why the rest of the names?"

Sirius laughed. "You're not going to like it..." he told her. When she asked him again, he took a deep breath and lowered his voice. "Alright. We are unregistered Animangi. James is a stag, Peter is a rat, and I am a dog. It was the only way we could be with Mooney when he went through his...you, know..._episode."_

"Make it sound like I'm bloody insane, why don't you..." Remus mumbled.

"Unreg...that's illegal!" Lily whispered sharply. "Does Dumbledore know about this? Well of course he doesn't, he would never allow it..."

At the sound of this thought, Remus' face whitened. "And he's _never_ going to find out. He's been so good to me. I don't think I could stand the look of disappointment on his face if he found out we went behind his back."

Lily glanced at James, who did not look worried in the least. In fact, more confidence radiated through him then she had ever seen before. It seemed that when James was doing something mischievous and cunning, there was nothing in the world that could stop him. She imagined him rebelling against the Death Eaters like he had said he was going to do one day. He was the type of person who would never give up until he found a way to outsmart them. A warrior's soul, her mother would call it.

"You need to be careful," she told them, using her words carefully. She didn't want to offend Remus, but spending time with a werewolf, even while in animal form, was not something to go about lightly.

"We will," James chuckled. "Promise."

"We're really careful, Lily," Peter reassured her kindly. Out of the four of them, he looked the most frightened about what they were doing. Lily felt sorry for him; he would probably never say what he was really thinking out loud, only going along with what they told him to do for fear of losing them. And he was such a nice boy, she thought. She supposed that sometimes he deserved better.

Sirius hopped down from the windowsill. "Okay, well now that Lily is finally with Prongs, we need to celebrate. I think we should go out tonight. All in favor say aye."

"Aw come on, Padfoot," Remus said, shaking his head. "She's Head Girl. She doesn't need us getting her into trouble."

"And he's Head Boy and you're a damn Prefect!" Sirius groaned. "I swear, my friends have gone soft on me. Me and Wormtail are the only sensible ones."

At the sound of his name, Peter began laughing overenthusiastically. Sirius shot him a look of annoyance, but she could tell that he, like James, enjoyed being worshipped.

James was now tilting his head, giving her a pleading look that annoyed her as much as it made her smile. "Live a little."

"Do you want a repeat of last time?" she teased, but at the mention of the past, hurt filled his eyes. She gave him an apologetic smile. "Oh, alright, I'll go if you want to. As long as we're careful."

Sirius' face lit up, and Lily could almost see the dozen of ideas racing through his mind "Perfect. We'll all meet in the Common Room at eleven. Don't be late or I'll personally sock you...except for you, Evans."

"Thank you..." Lily replied sarcastically as the five of them headed toward the Great Hall for dinner.

When eleven o'clock came, Lily and James were already waiting in the Common Room for the rest of them, none of whom had not listened to Sirius' warning and were nowhere to be found. The two of them sat down on a couch and James put his arm around her shoulders. Closing her eyes, she lay back on his strong chest and fell into a state of comfort and protection which only he could provide.

"I've missed you," she told him.

"Me too." The hurt had flooded back into his voice, making a sweet vulnerability that she didn't want to wane. "I'm so glad you said yes."

"I'm glad you asked. I would have thought you'd have given up on me."

"Never," was the simple word he chose. It played back in her mind like a love song, warmed her heart like the words of a poem. Sitting her now, listening to the sound of his heart beating, Lily knew there was nothing in the world that she wanted more than for James Potter to be all hers. And that, more than anything else, scared her the most. It was only when you had something that you could lose it. It was only when you loved someone that they could hurt you. Although everyone wanted love, hardly anyone seemed to realize how much it tore you apart on the inside. To love and to be loved meant taking a piece of your own heart and giving it to someone else, a process that was as figuratively messy as much as it would be if the action were literal. And then, if you were lucky, the other person would treasure it, hold onto it, treat it like their own or better even. It was just a matter of finding that person who would be willing to keep it safe.

When the boys finally came down, Lily and James hadn't said another word to each other. But there hadn't been a need—it was like the quiet Common Room had been filled with the unspoken words. They sat up when Sirius walked over to them. "Sorry to interrupt," he told them, making a gagging noise. "Didn't know you wanted to cuddle by the fire."

"Shut up," James smiled. "Like you weren't doing that with Doreen Johnson last week..."

"Hey, that was supposed to be a secret, thank you very much," Sirius laughed. "I don't want people to know that I was cozying up to that girl with the big nose. It was more of an opportunity thing, you understand..."

"You're mean, you know that?" Lily told him, only half serious, as she stood to her feet with James. She lowered her voice. "So where are we going?"

Sirius smiled. "You'll find out, Evans, calm down now. Prongs, did you bring the cloak?"

With a groan, James ran back upstairs to the boys' dormitory to retrieve the Invisibility Cloak, which he had apparently forgotten.

"What is _up_ with him?" Sirius grumbled. "Forgetting the cloak? Has he lost his mind?"

"Maybe he has too much on his mind," Peter suggested, pointing to Lily.

Sirius rolled his eyes as Lily raised her eyebrows. "Well that just isn't going to work, is it? You need to make yourself more unattractive, Evans. That way he'll still like you for your personality, but he won't be gushing over you every five minutes, forgetting everything..."

"And that I will take as a compliment, thank you, Padfoot," Lily replied wittily. She smiled at Sirius, who grinned back with an honest admiration in his eyes. She may have disrupted their friendship, but she knew that in order for her to be standing here with them right now she had to have won not only Sirius' approval, but his loyalty. There had been other girls that James dated throughout his time at Hogwarts, and Lily was certain none of them were allowed the honor of tagging along with the boys on one of their escapades into the unknown, let alone being permitted to know about them.

"Got it!" James said softly as he emerged with the silver cloak she hadn't see for two years. It looked exactly the same, with no tears in the magical fibers as far as Lily could see. She grabbed it from his hands and examined it more closely; each thread was perfectly intact, as if it had just been woven last week. And even then, they wouldn't have been so flawless.

"Same old cloak, Lily," James chuckled as she made her way down the edges, still scrutinizing. "It's not like you haven't seen it before."

Not looking up from her examination, Lily frowned at him. "Did you say you got this from your dad? Where did he get it from?"

"His dad. He says it's been in our family for generations."

"But...that's impossible." And then, turning to him, "James, haven't you ever thought it was odd? Cloaks like this don't last for more than a year or two."

"It's just special, I guess." James shrugged again, looking uninterested. "I never really asked my dad about it. I was just excited to get it when I started school; he hardly ever let me touch it when I was little."

Groaning obnoxiously, Sirius pushed his way through James and Lily, ending their conversation. "Alright, alright, we need a little less caring about where the cloak came from and more about what we're going to do with it. I'm sick of the Shrieking Shack; let's do something more exciting. Mooney, do you have the map?"

Remus held up a folded yellowed parchment with the words "Maurader's Map" written in a thin script.

Lily looked at them curiously. "What's that?" she asked.

"The Maurader's Map," Remus explained. "Created by yours truly, Misters Mooney, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs. This baby tells you every secret passage along with where every student and teacher are in this school. It's what Prongs here should had had the night you two got caught, but I guess he got a little cocky."

James gave a sarcastic laugh. "Funny, Mooney."

Remus grinned. "I try. But the main point is, with this map, we won't get caught."

"Alright," Lily exclaimed. "Let's go." She beamed at James, who looked happier than she had ever seen him. He grabbed her hand, and the five of them silently left the dormitories.

The map that Remus clutched tightly in his hands was as incredible as the cloak that barely covered the five of them as they moved through the hallways. Footprints with their names above them marked their exact location as they passed the Prefect's bathroom and headed toward the tunnel that she and James had snuck out of. Lily looked at the part of the map that marked Dumbledore's office at the other end of the school, where he seemed to be pacing back and forth. The rest of the students and teachers, as she would have expected, were safety tucked in their beds.

When they finally arrived outside in the chilly night air, they remained under the cloak in case anyone with a case of sleeplessness was looking out the windows. As Lily gazed at it through the shear cloth, her heart began pounding as their neared the Forbidden Forrest, eerily set in fog and blackness. They couldn't possibly be going there, she thought. It was Forbidden for a reason, and while she was bold enough to sneak out of their beds, she didn't think she had the bravery to face whatever lived in that forest.

Right as they neared the edge of the trees, James pulled the cloak off of them. "We're not going in here, are we," Lily said, more of a hopeful statement than a question.

"We'll be fine. I came in here with Hagrid one time for detention. No big deal," Sirius assured her. His voice, however, was not one that she wanted to trust—it was filled with excitement for the adventure rather than a responsible contemplation.

"James," she whispered, turning to him. But he was no better; his eyes danced with restlessness, as if they couldn't get through the cover of trees fast enough. She knew she should turn around, she knew she should wait for them while they went in. After all, she wasn't afraid of staying by herself outside the forest; it was what lay inside that she was wary of. They didn't call it the Forbidden Forest for nothing. But before she knew what she was doing, she had taken a deep breath and stepped forward with the others onto the dirt ground. The hoot of an owl startled her, and she felt James' fingers weave through her own in comfort.

"This way," Sirius told them valiantly. Peter and Remus followed him through a thicket of bushes, while James and Lily lingered behind a little bit.

"You alright?" James asked her. He seemed concerned now, as if he had just realized where he had taken her.

"Fine," Lily told him, not untruthfully. There was peace in the Forest that she could have never imagined. Nothing sprang out of the bushes like she had expected them to. Nothing made shrieking noises from a mile away. It was just quiet set under a sky full of stars, as calm and tranquil as a gently moving river.

They kept moving through the scattered trees. Every few seconds, James would glance behind his back. Whether that was because he was marking where they had gone or was making sure they were alone, Lily did not want to think about. Peter, with his wide eyes and washed out face, looked torn between two emotions—part of him did not want to be in this forest in the least while the other part of him would rather die than tear himself apart from his only friends.

"Let's sit," James yelled to Sirius, who was much farther ahead. "We're going to get lost if we go any farther."

The five of them sat down on some rocks that looked like they had been placed in a circle for that very purpose. Lily shuttered at the thought of some other creatures in the forest gathering in this spot.

"Who's scared?" Sirius laughed. Peter raised a shaky hand, but quickly retracted it when he saw that no one else had followed.

Lily leaned against James, who placed a strong arm around her waist. "Having fun?"

She nodded, and turned around to look at him. And then, as her eyes caught sight of figures moving toward them, she let out a shriek of terror. It was a pack of centaurs, half man and half horse, with arrows pointed menacingly at them. All five of them jumped to their feet, shaking.

"Why are you in our forest?" asked the lead centaur, with long brown hair that fell to his shoulders and dark eyes that in the dark seemed to not be there at all.

"W...w...we were just leaving," Lily stammered. The centaur's gaze fell on her, and she felt a coldness surround her.

"Were you now? Didn't your Headmaster tell you to not come into the Forest? Especially at night, foolish ones..."

"They're just fawns," replied another. He looked exactly the same as the leader, although his hair was blonde and the fur on his lower half was light as well. "Probably had no idea what they were getting themselves in to."

"Shouldn't all creatures be held accountable to his or her mistakes?" bellowed the leader. Peter jumped back in surprise, the muscles in his legs twitching sideways like he was considering running away.

"But like he said, we are only children," Lily told him quickly. She stepped forward, and felt James' cautioning hand on her arm. She bowed her head, keeping her eyes locked on the leader. "Please, we mean you no harm, only respect. We want nothing to fear here in this Forest."

The leader smiled unkindly, showing many blackened teeth. "Ah, but it is not us that you must fear, young one. I can tell you are wise from how you speak to us. Well learned, are you? Tell me this, child; can you look up into the night sky and use your brain for something useful?"

"I have not studied Astrology yet, if that's what you..."

"Of course you haven't!" he yelled. Birds flew from the trees as his voice echoed through the forest. "Because no human can study the stars like we have for centuries! But do they come to us seeking wisdom? Never!"

"But that isn't our fault!" Sirius suddenly exclaimed. "If they didn't force you in this forest, I'm sure you would contribute a lot to Wizarding school!"

By the sudden silence in the air, Sirius knew with a gulp that he had said the wrong thing.

"Force?" the centaur said angrily. The others, also offended, stomped their hoofs into the ground. "Wizards may have the wands, but they did not force us into this forest. We have lived here for centuries, studying the stars, becoming more wise, more clever than your kind."

He lifted his two front legs and brought them down hard on Sirius, who fell to the ground with a cry. Blood seeped out of an angry gash on his arm.

"Stop this!" Lily begged. James had already ran to Sirius' side where he stood protectively over him. "He's hurt!"

"Justice!" the centaur howled. "A small reward for everything your kind has done to us!"

"We don't know anything of the discord of our kinds. The young don't see with prejudice. I'm sure you realize _that _from your fawns, who have to be taught to hate. I beg you to leave us alone to attend to our friends' wounds. We will be forever grateful of your kindness..."

The centaur charged forward, and for a second, she thought he was going to knock her to the ground as well. But he stopped two inches short of her face, breathing heavy as his eyes stared deep into his. "Your words have saved you, young one. Do not return to this forest again."

Only when she nodded did he break away. He signaled to his pack and with a howl into the night air they took off back where they had come from.

Lily barely had time to catch her breath when James grabbed her by the wrist. "He's hurt bad. We have to get Hagrid. Wormtail, Moony, stay here with him. Keep him conscious."

And then they were off, running through the forest with the gracefulness and quickness of the creatures that lived in it. It seemed to take forever to reach Hagrid's small wooden hut just outside the trees, but when they saw it they sprinted toward the door and began pounding on it with urgency.

"Wha' the...who is it?" said a gruff voice on the other side.

"Hagrid! It's James!" James yelled.

The door swung open, revealing Hagrid, shocked to see them. He was a giant of a man, towering over the two of them. The beard on his chin was thick and messy, making it so you could barely see his mouth. But despite his size, it was his eyes that had called Lily's attention, so kind, so filled with eagerness to help any creature that needed it.

"James! Lily!" he snapped. "Wha' are you doin' 'ere?"

"Hagrid, Sirius is hurt!" Lily cried. "In the Forbidden Forrest!"

Without another word, they hurried out the door, with James leading the way. They reached the tree that had a groaning Sirius underneath. His arm looked worse than when they had left him; a steady stream of thick, red blood was oozing out of the wound into the dirt below.

"Wha' are you kids doin' out 'ere?" Hagrid yelled. "Tryin' ta get 'urselves killed? Wha' happened?"

"Centaurs," Remus replied in a shaky voice.

The giant man scooped Sirius up in his arms and carried him to his hut, where he set him gently on his bed, which, like the rest of Hagrid's things, was three the regular size. There was an umbrella laying on the table next to the fire, and Hagrid picked up, and examined it, as if he was contemplating something. Then he shook his head and he set it back down, heading toward the fire where he manually heated up a kettle of boiling water to clean the wound.

"Don' know what you 'ere thinkin', comin' out 'ere alone in the middle o' the night. 'Specially you two," Hagrid said, pointing a large, sausage-like finger at James and Lily.

"Oh, come on, Hagrid," Sirius said quietly, the first words that weren't groans that they had heard out of him. "We were just having a little bit of fun."

"Ya, well that's all I need, losin' one o' ya," he replied, thick emotion filling his voice. He quickly busied himself with wetting what looked like to be a pillowcase, which he gently dabbed on Sirius' throbbing arm.

"I'll do that," Lily told him, grabbing it out of his hands. As she began where Hagrid at left off, she tried not to snap at Sirius who did not fail to mention how much it burned when the hot water touched his raw skin. "We're sorry about coming out here, Hagrid," she said softly, not looking at him for fear catching a glimpse of the disappointment in his face.

"Wha' are you doin' 'ere anyway, Lily. Thought ya didn't like these lot," Hagrid asked.

"Er, well," said James. "We're kinda together now."

A whoop of happiness from Hagrid rocked the house, and Fang, his bloodhound, charged under the table, apparently thinking the booming voice was thunder. He pulled James and Lily into a tight hug, squeezing the air out of both their lungs.

"Hagrid, we can't breathe," she managed to tell him.

He let them drop to the ground. "'Bout time, it is! I've been sayin' since I met ya you'd be a couple one day. Didn't I tell ya, Remus?"

"Yeah," Remus replied as he collapsed on the big furry couch where Peter had just sat down.

"How you doing, Sirius?" Peter asked.

Sirius gave one of his apathetic shrugs. "Could use something for the pain. Got any whiskey, Hagrid?"

With a grunt, Hagrid stomped off to the kitchen where he retrieved an old dusty bottle filled with yellow liquor. He handed it to Sirius, who drank it greedily. "Good stuff," he said with a hiccup.

"Hagrid?" Lily asked. "You're not going to tell anyone what we did, right?"

He shook his head and smiled kindly at her. "Naw, I'd never do tha'. You're my favorite students in the school."

"Course we are," James laughed. "No contest there."

They stayed for a few minutes longer and talked with Hagrid, and then said their goodbyes, realizing only by Lily looking at her watch how late it was. They slipped under the Invisibility Cloak, and when they reached the portrait hole, James whispered the password sharply. The Fat Lady seemed drowsy and out of it as she swung the door open and fell back to sleep with a loud snore.

"Let me change that bandage again, Padfoot," Lily told him as he collapsed on the couch in pain. She pulled out her wand and gently cleaned his wound and then wrapped it up neatly.

"I knew we kept you around for a reason. These three would have let me die from an infection," said Sirius with an appreciative smile.

"You might want to see Madam Pompfry tomorrow just in case. I don't know how skilled I am about getting the wound completely clean," said Lily.

James rolled his eyes. "And tell her what? That he fell? Cause I have a feeling she won't believe that."

"Just trying to be the responsible one. Besides, she won't press you for details. How could she if she wants students to come to her no matter what? Hexes gone bad, students sneaking out and getting hurt...it's all part of the job description for her."

"Thanks, Lily," Sirius told her. "But I think I'm fine. I'll let you know if it doesn't get better."

Lily smiled and nodded at him, but ignored James' soft touch on her arm. If he was going to put getting in trouble over the well-being of his friend, even in a moment of ignorance of the seriousness of the injury, she didn't want to speak with him for awhile. "Going to bed," she mumbled. "Glad you're alright, Sirius. G'night."

"Night," the three boys replied as she hurried to the girls' staircase.

"Lily."

She turned back. "If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't be alive right now," James told her. "So thank you."

Lily shrugged. "No big deal." And then, he held his arms out a little bit, his eyes pleading. She gave in, falling into them with a sigh.

"I love you," he whispered. The sound of the words was barely caught by her ears, but she would have known regardless—the feelings seemed to pour out of him.

"Love you too." These words were often spoken throughout the castle by two hormone-driven teenagers, but to her they actually meant something. As intimate as sex, as personal as a secret diary. Not irrational, not spoken only because it was the right time to say it. Real.

As she went up the steps and into her dormitory, where her roommates were snoring soundly, the look in James' eyes burned in her mind. When he gazed at her, it was like the heavens had opened up and God himself was speaking to him. It was sweet, sure. But it also scared her, although she wasn't exactly sure why. She would trust James with her life, so there was nothing to be frightened of there, but it was the intensity of it that send shivers down her spine when she wasn't even cold.

His brown eyes continued to stare at her as she drifted off to sleep—and then in her dreams as well.


	9. Chapter Eight

**Chapter Eight**

‡

**Renesmee**

As Nick suggested, I jumped in the shower to wash off the smell of his motorcycle. I had only talked to my mother for a minute when I came through the door. Both of my parents had amazing senses—they would definitely be able to smell the gasoline on me. And I was not going to let them find out about the motorcycle—they would just forbid me to ride it which would in turn take away the one and only form of excitement in my life. I was going to continue riding that motorcycle—and my parents were not going to find out about it.

Suddenly, the thoughts of what I had realized in the library kept began pushing their way into my consciousness. I tried to change the subject, something much harder to do in your own head—I was in no mood to think about what had happened right now. What I needed to do what get my mind off of it.

Motorcycle. Even thinking that word sent chills of excitement down my spine. I still couldn't believe that I had actually ridden on the back of a boy's motorcycle. More importantly, I couldn't believe I actually found someone at school who I wanted to be friends with. I had tried hanging out with the other kids at school many times, going to the mall, the movies, and even rock climbing, but I never had any fun. All Nick and I did was go to the library, and I had a blast. There was just something about him that intrigued me; I couldn't wait to see him again. Maybe one day we would even start dating. I smiled, realizing that ever since I started talking to Nick, my thought pattern was becoming very similar to Caitlin's.

I felt sick to my stomach as I came to an important realization—even just being friends with Nick would mean that he would eventually want to meet my family.

I thought back to the first time someone at school had met my family. It was when we first moved to Washington. My English teacher had assigned us a project that we could either chose a partner to work on with or work on by ourselves. Since I was the new girl, I figured I would be working by myself. I had quietly read over my notes as the class erupted into talking, everyone claiming his or her partner. Finally, the teacher called the class to order and began teaching again. I had been only half-paying attention because as usual, my father had already taught me everything we had been learning.

I was startled out of daydreaming by a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see Matt Yotzi, a cute, friendly, popular boy in my class. He held a note in his hand, which I figured he wanted me to pass along to someone else.

"Who is it for?" I mouthed.

The corners of his mouth turned up in a small smile. "You."

I managed to smile back, though my increased heart rate and sweaty palms made me feel like I was going to faint. What could he want to write to me about? I had barely even spoken to him—this was only my second day of class. Come to think of it, I had spoken to him—yesterday he had asked me what the homework was. I had tried explaining to him what pages the teacher wanted us to do in our workbooks, but as usual, I could barely get the words out. Finally, I just wrote down the assignment on a piece of paper and handed it to him.

That was probably what the note was about: asking what the homework was. He was just going to skip the excruciating awkward step of speaking to me and just ask me in a note. I felt myself calm down as I came to that conclusion. All I had to do was write an answer and then pass it back. Write down an answer, pass it back. Write down an answer, pass it back…

But wait—the teacher hadn't even assigned us any homework yet. There had to be something else in that note. I almost groaned out loud; these were the times when I loathed my parents—raising me to have zero teenage social skills. My knowledge on how to handle this situation was strictly limited to the novels I had read and the two movies I had just watched last night. And unless this had to do with stealing his girlfriend or being the first girl football player in the school, they weren't much help.

I glanced down and to my horror realized that I still hadn't taken the note. I watched his smile slowly turn into a small frown as he pushed it into my hand. "Read it, Nessie." he whispered softly.

I almost smacked myself—I probably looked like a complete idiot. I turned back around and slowly unfolded the piece of paper, glancing up at the teacher to make sure that she didn't realize what I was doing. I had heard of high school teachers reading confiscated notes to the class; I didn't know what this note said, but I knew for sure that I didn't want it read in front of everybody.

hey nessy, I was wondering if u didnt all ready have a partner if u wanted 2 b mine

I almost shrieked with delight—Matt wanted to be partners with me! Sure, he wasn't the brightest person in the world, but he was a partner. And a really cool partner at that.

Sure, thanks. Are you free after school to work on it?

yeah, but do u mind if we go to your house? mine's being fumigated

I turned around and nodded, though I highly doubted his story. I knew he just wanted to get inside the infamous Cullen house. I wasn't completely clueless—I heard the rumors going around school about my family. Everybody wanted to find out the real story, though they would be disappointed to know that there really wasn't any story at all. There were no secrets to be discovered, no mysteries to unravel. I was just another member of the plain, boring Cullen family. And I liked it that way; it kept life—normal.

Okay, so my house after school then?

sounds good. my mom is picking me up after school today, so she can just take us 2 your house

Cool. I'll meet you by your locker.

can't wait

After class, I went into the bathroom to call my father. I dialed the number the second I closed the door, knowing that I had limited time between bells.

"Hey, sweetheart. Is everything okay?" he asked when he answered the phone. I realized he was probably concerned because I was calling him in the middle of the day.

"Yeah, Daddy. I was just calling to tell you that you don't need to pick me up after school today. My friend's mom is going to take me home."

"It _is_ her mom who is driving, correct? I don't want you to get into the car with someone who just got her license."

I sighed—he had been so overprotective since we moved to Washington. While we lived in Alaska, he had always trusted me and hardly ever feared my safety. Sure, there wasn't a lot of trouble I could get into, practically living in seclusion and being home schooled, but still, he used to trust me a lot more. I supposed I could understand being protective about who I got into a car with, seeing as I got into an accident when I was little, but it was still frustrating. "Yes, his mom is driving," I answered.

"His?"

"Yeah, his name is Matt Yotzi," I said sweetly. I _could_ express my annoyance with the interrogations he always seemed to bestow on me, but decided against it. He loved me—his sheltering was a compliment. "He's a sophomore like me, and he doesn't have his license yet," I paused. "Daddy, you know I would never lie to you."

"I know, honey. You never have and I know you never will. I was just making sure. Sorry."

"It's okay. I understand. And is it okay if he comes over for a little while? We have an English project to do."

"Of course," he replied, but it sounded somewhat hesitant. "Anything else you need?"

"Um…can you get me out of school for the rest of the day?" I asked hopefully.

I heard him laugh. "Nice try. Have a good day, Nessie. Good luck on your science test."

"Thanks for reminding me," I said sarcastically. "I'm really nervous."

"Ness, we studied the brain while we were in Alaska, remember? You did so well on it. It will be really easy for you. In fact, everything should be really easy for you, at these level classes. But next year you'll be in the honor's program, so you'll have a challenge for once. I'm sure every class is really boring."

"Kind of," I admitted.

"Well, you take your tests at the end of the year and then next year and then they'll put you in all of the honors classes."

"If I pass the tests, Dad."

He chuckled. "_If_ you pass them? You're smarter than any honors student they've had before."

"Dad…" I groaned. I hated when he talked about how smart I was. It was as if I was supposed to stand out from the other kids when all I wanted to do was blend in. It was fine that I was going into the honors program; plenty of kids were in it. But after that I was done—I was going to stay quiet, do my homework, and count the days until summer vacation.

"Sorry. I'll see you in a little while. Love you."

"Love you too."

At the end of the day I met Matt by his locker. He looked up and smiled intriguingly at me when he saw me approach.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked as he casually leaned against his locker.

I nodded as I pushed my hair behind my ear, suddenly conscious of how I looked. I had never felt this way before around a boy, not that I had much experience. I glanced down at my dark blue jeans and navy blue tee shirt, vowing that from now on, I would wear something more fashionable to school.

"Do you mind if we wait outside?" he asked as he ran his fingers through his beach blonde hair. "I really need some fresh air."

I was barely able to nod again when he grabbed my hand and quickly led me out of the school into pouring rain. Courteously, he held an umbrella over both of our heads as we waited for his mother.

"Thanks," I said softly in regards to the umbrella, watching the rain pour down all around me.

"No problem. You gotta get used to bringing one of these, Nessie. It's not so much snow you have to deal with here—just lots of rain."

"Yeah," I agreed.

"So have you lived in Alaska your whole life?"

"No, we lived Phoenix, Arizona until I was four."

His blue eyes grew wide with surprise. "You lived in Phoenix and moved to Alaska? What a bad trade. Why did your parents do that?"

I shrugged, feeling myself blush a tiny bit. "I don't really know."

"So you were home schooled in Alaska?"

I nodded, causing him to frown. "You're not very talkative, are you?" he asked.

"Sorry. Yes, I was home schooled by my father and sometimes by my aunts and uncles."

"Did you all live together in Alaska?"

"No, we lived next door to each other. My aunt Rosalie and uncle Jasper…no wait, my aunt Rosalie and uncle Emmett lived next to us. And my aunt Alice and uncle jasper were next to them. And then my aunt Rosalie...wait no, I said her already. My grandparents were next to them, I think..." I stopped my rambling as I felt myself blushing deeply, wishing I was anywhere else.

He chuckled softly, his blue eyes dancing with amusement. "Are you confused about your own family?" he teased.

"No, sorry. I'm just really tired," I lied, figuring that if I attempted to tell him about my lack of explanation skills, I would not be able to explain it correctly.

"Well, just so you know, if somebody told me there was girl moving who was home schooled in Alaska, I would of assumed she was a total freak. But you, Nessie Cullen, are really cool."

I smiled shyly, pleased by this. "Thanks."

"Oh, look, my mom's here," he said dryly, waving a blue mini-van over to us. He opened the sliding door, motioning for me to get into the car first. Once again I blushed at the kindness of the act. He slid into the sit next to me, giving me a small, apologetic smile, as if he was sorry that he couldn't drive us himself.

"Hello," his mother greeted sweetly as she looked back at me with inquisitive green eyes.

"Hi," I replied. "I'm Nessie."

Through the rearview mirror I saw her smile, sweet and motherly. "I'm Linda Yotzi. You're the girl who just moved here, right? Nessie Cullen?"

I had to look twice at her—she looked so much older than my parents and aunts and uncles. I estimated her to be the same age as my grandparents, maybe older. It was hard to believe that her son and I were the same age; she must have had Matt when she was older. But then again, I supposed many adults in Washington appeared older, as if my parents were the ones who had me at an inappropriate age.

"Yeah, we just arrived two days ago. We came from Alaska."

"Alaska? How nice. Well, it's wonderful to meet you. Is your family settling in okay?"

"Yes, thank you."

"How do you like Washington?"

"I like it a lot, thank you. Well, except for all the rain."

"Yeah, it is something to get used to. I've lived in Washington my whole life. I grew up in Forks—it's about an hour and a half drive from here. It was rainy there too—we hardly ever saw sun." She paused for a second, as if recalling a memory. "Now Nessie, I remember a Cullen family that lived in Forks. I was in college at the time and would only visit on the holidays, but I remember people talking about the Cullen's. Now let's see, there were a bunch of teenagers living in the house, all were either the foster kids or adopted—I can't remember which—by a young man and his wife. I think most of them were my brother Steven's age—so probably seventeen or eighteen. Oh, I can't remember their names or even their father's name—and he was a very prominent citizen in the community. Anyway, are they related to you, dear?"

I started to shake my head when I realized she couldn't see me do so while she was driving. And besides, I supposed that I needed to work on my speaking skills, since apparently people notice that I wasn't talkative. "No, I don't think so. We lived in Arizona and then moved to Alaska. None of my family has ever lived in Washington."

"Arizona. I've always wanted to see Arizona. Is it nice there?"

"I don't really remember, sorry. We moved when I was four." I was hoping that would be the end of the questions, but she kept going, inquiring about my life in Alaska and how it compared to Washington.

When we finally reached my house, I thanked Mrs. Yotzi and jumped out of the car, grateful for an end to the interrogation. Then Matt and I proceeded up the walk to the front door, which was unlocked, as always. I was starting to get the feeling that my parents didn't know about the deranged psychopaths that break into houses-people are not supposed to leave their doors unlocked these days.

My father was inside, sitting on the living room couch, reading a newspaper. He glanced up at the sound of the door closing and placed the paper on the coffee table in front of him.

"Hi D..." I started.

"Hi, I'm Nessie's brother, Edward," my father interrupted, his voice perfectly calm and even. He quickly stood up and walked over to shake Matt's hand.

I glanced at him, wondering if this was some sort of a joke. He did not look at me, so I glanced back at Matt, who apparently found nothing wrong with this situation. I mean, I knew my father looked young, but did he look young enough to be my brother? And why was he pretending to be my brother in the first place?

"Hey, I'm Matt. Are you in high school or did you graduate already?"

High school? What did he mean did he graduate already? Of course he graduated already. Like twenty years ago. What was going on?

"I graduated last year, from a high school in Alaska," my father replied, still not meeting my eye.

I tried to fight back the unwelcome tears which were quickly filling my eyes. I was so confused—why was my father doing this? This was so embarrassing. Matt was going to think that my family was so weird-I mean, my father was telling him that he was my brother, for no apparent reason at all. And why was Matt going along with it? Maybe he felt like it was his moral duty to play along with the crazy people. I practically wanted to die right there.

"Sweet. Is that your Crossfire outside?"

My father nodded. I watched as a proud smile immediately appeared on his face at the mention of his beloved car, which I now assumed he cared more about than his once-beloved daughter.

Matt grinned. "It's awesome, dude."

"Thanks," he paused, finally turning to me. "Do you two have a project to do?"

"Yes," I whispered, barely able to look at him. I had never been so confused in my life—was this a dream? Or a reality show with a hidden camera? That had to have been it—there was a camera somewhere in this room and any second now my family and friends were going to come out from the other room and laugh at how gullible I had been. I literally began looking around the room, trying to find some trace that my theory was right. Of course, I did not see anything.

Just then, my grandfather walked through the door with an arm full of grocery bags. He glanced at me and then immediately moved his gaze to my father, who was walking over to take the bags out of his hands.

"Hi, Mr. Cullen," Matt said, briefly holding up his hand in acknowledgment. "I'm Matt."

"Hi, Matt," my grandfather greeted, his voice as perfectly calm as my father's had been. "Are you two working on that English project that Nessie told me about?"

"Yeah. We'd better get started, Nessie. I can only stay for an hour."

"Do you two need anything?" my grandfather asked kindly.

"No, we're fine, thanks," Matt answered. "Nessie, where do you want to work?"

I barely heard him. I could only stand there, my eyes wide with confusion as I glanced back and forth from my father to my grandfather. Neither of them looked at me.

"Nessie?" Matt repeated. "Where do you want to work?"

"Oh, sorry. We can go into the family room. It's this way," I said quietly before I picked up my books and left the room, wanting to be as far away from them as possible.

"Your dad's really young," he commented, interrupting the silence that had begun to settle in the room.

So he _had_ just been playing along. He knew my "brother" was really my dad and had just been playing along in the kitchen. How could my father do this to me? Now I was going to have to explain to Matt why my family was acting so weird—and I did not even have a reason for it.

"Matt, I'm really sorry," I finally said.

He furrowed his eyebrows apparently confused. "Why are you sorry?"

"Because of _the_m."

"Because of who? Your dad and brother?"

I was about to explain when I stopped, realizing what this meant: he truly believed what my father and grandfather had told him. But how could he believe it? Wasn't it as obvious as it was to me that Edward was not my brother, but in fact my father? And wasn't it as obvious as it was to me that Carlisle was not my father, but in fact, my grandfather?

"Never mind," I said quickly. "What were you saying?"

"How young your dad is. What is he, in his thirties?"

"I have no idea," I admitted quietly, and it wasn't a lie—I really didn't know how old my grandfather was. Or how old my real father was, for that matter. But they were definitely not young enough to play the ages that Matt believed them to be.

"Is your mom young too?"

'Frankly, Matt, I don't know who my mother is anymore,' I thought. 'I suspect that my new mother is my grandmother, but you can't be too sure these days. Maybe next week my mother will be Aunt Rosalie, which would make my father Uncle Emmett…'

But of course, I would never say any of that out loud. "I guess so" was what I settled on.

"That's cool. So you never told me that you had a brother. I thought you said it was just you and your parents in Alaska. Did your brother live with you?"

"Yes."

"Awesome. You know, you look a lot like him."

"Oh," I said quietly, but what I really wanted to do was scream 'Of course we look alike! He's my father!'

He gave a me a questioning look, placing his hand on my arm in a concerned manner. "Nessie, you're hardly talking again. Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything's okay," I lied.

"If you say so. So for this project, I was thinking…

I had just been drying myself off, when the sharp ring of the doorbell brought me back to reality.

"Is someone going to get that?" I yelled. It rang again. "Anybody? Mom? Dad?" Ring. Ring. Ring.

I groaned before I quickly threw my pajamas on and hurried downstairs. I ran my fingers through my soaking wet hair, hoping to make myself more presentable. I reached the door and threw it open to see Jacob's smiling face.

"Nessie!" he exclaimed, picking me up as he hugged me.

"Jake. Can't. Breathe," I managed to say as his strong arms practically crushed my lungs.

"Oh, sorry." He set me down and then kissed my cheek. "How are you?"

"I'm well. What about you?"

He grinned. "I'm amazing."

Though I was in no mood to be happy, his enthusiasm forced a small smile to appear on my face. "You're especially cheerful today."

"Yeah I am."

"Well, if you're looking for my parents, I don't know where my dad is, but my mom was here before I jumped in the shower. I have no clue where she went."

"Oh," he said, the smile not falling from his perfect face.

I looked at him with accusing eyes. "You know where they are."

He looked back at me innocently. "No I don't."

"Yes you do."

"Fine, maybe I do," he muttered, looking around the house.

I punched him teasingly but he didn't seem to even notice. Pain shot through my hand. Did he wear a suit of armor under his clothes? "Tell me!" I pleaded, holding my throbbing hand behind my back before he could see that I had hurt it.

He turned his attention back to me. "It's no big deal, Ness. Your family is with my family," he shrugged, walking into the family room and collapsing on the couch.

I sat down next to him. "Why?"

"Because they're..." he paused. "…discussing some things. Important things."

I sighed dramatically. "Just something else I will never understand."

"You'll understand one day, I promise. Don't stress about it, Nessie."

Looking up so his brown eyes met mine, I smiled weakly; he knew me too well.

"Hey Nessie, do you mind if I crash here for a little bit? Just a nap. I'm so…" He yawned. "…tired. I don't think I can even drive home."

"Of course. Do you need anything? Food, something to drink…" I stopped at the sound of his loud snore. "Good night, Jakey," I whispered, kissing him on his warm cheek.

I lounged around the house, waiting for Jake to wake up. He seemed like he was in a deep sleep, so I assumed his little nap was going to take all night. I went upstairs to my room and collapsed on my bed, my mind full of only one thing: Jake.

My heart fluttered as I thought of him, asleep downstairs. I wondered what he was dreaming about. Probably food—I've never seen somebody eat as much as Jake did. Actually, come to think of it, his brothers ate just as much. His family was huge and not just because there were a lot of people in it. Every single one of his brothers (and there were, like, ten of them) were as muscular and tall as Jake. I had only met them a few times, but they seemed very nice, just like Jake. He seemed extremely close with them, which I liked; I sometimes wished I had a brother or sister I could be close to. But then again, I was closer to Jake than I would ever be to a sibling.

That was another thing that perplexed me about my life: my relationship with him. Just like my family, he never seemed to age. Surprisingly, I didn't even know how old he was. I figured he had to be at least eight years older than me.

I chuckled; how did I think I even had even the slightest chance with a boy eight years older than me? Besides, even if he wanted to date me, my father would never allow it. Eight years was a huge age difference. However, my father did confuse me; he let me sleep over Jake's house and vice versa whenever I wanted. He also left us alone a lot; he did not appear to have a problem with it. Maybe my father also realized that my chances with Jacob were slim-to-none.

Oh how I wished it would turn into something…

It didn't matter anyway. Wishing wouldn't make Jake feel about me the way I felt about him. Jacob would only see me as his 'little sister,' and nothing more. But still, I couldn't refrain from imagining what it would like to be Jake's girlfriend. To kiss his warm lips, to hear him tell me that he loved me. Sure he has told me that before, but again, it was in a sisterly way. I longed to hear him say it like he meant it; I longed for him to take my face in his rough hands and kiss me passionately…

Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep. The door opening downstairs startled me awake. Hearing my parent's voices, I ran downstairs before they woke up Jacob.

"Hey, Daddy. Hey, Mom," I whispered. "Jake is sleeping in the other room."

"He must be exhausted…" my mother murmured, gliding to the family room.

I turned to my father as he was taking off his shoes and putting them into the coat closet. "Did you have fun at…?" I trailed off, hoping he would enlighten me on where they had gone.

"Yes, thank you, sweetheart."

As he turned to the window, I scowled; of course he would not tell me. He continued looking outside, as if he was waiting to see something. I watched as his golden eyes scanned the entire yard.

"What are you doing?" I finally asked, annoyed.

He ignored me and continued looking out the window. "I want you to stay in the house tonight," he finally said, turning to me.

"When am I ever allowed out at night?"

Once again, he ignored me. "And I want you to sleep in the family room, on the other couch."

"Okay…" I said, confusion ringing through my voice. "Is everything all right?"

"Yes, sweetheart. Nothing you need to worry about." He kissed the top of my head and then walked to the closet to get me some blankets. "Get some sleep," he said before going upstairs.

My mother came back into the living room, chuckling. "He's out cold."

I smiled at this, despite my now frustrated mood. "He fell asleep as soon as he got here."

"Did your father tell you that we want you to sleep in the family room tonight?"

I nodded, but my mother wasn't even paying attention—she was looking around the room in the same paranoid way my father was.

"Should I be scared to sleep tonight?"

"Oh no, honey. Jake is right there and we'll be upstairs if you need us."

"Okay." I shivered, picturing a psychotic murderer coming into my house while I slept.

"Are you cold, honey? Here…" She went into the closet and pulled out another blanket. "There you go. Good night, Renesmee. Sleep well."

"Good night, Mom."

I went back into the family room with the large number of blankets my parents had given me and collapsed on the couch—I hadn't realized how tired I was. All I wanted to do was fall asleep and escape to a dream that had nothing to do with the reality I was forced to deal with.

But I knew I had to think about it sooner or later—I might as well do it now. There were many questions I needed to ask myself. Was there something more to Nick? Was he similar to my family and Jake's family? Was I a magnet to weird people? Could I ever live a normal life, like a normal teenager? I knew the answers to all four of those questions: yes, yes, yes, and…no.

No matter how much I denied it, there was something more to Nick, and I had a feeling it was deeply connected with my family. Pale skin, beautiful eyes, cold body temperature; there was no way it was all a coincidence. And though I didn't know a lot about people outside of Alaska and Washington, I knew that there couldn't be that many people in the world with every one of those characteristics.

The last two questions depressed me—ever since a month or two after I moved to Washington, I knew I would never live a normal life. Even if I tried to hang out with my "friends," I knew it wouldn't make a difference; they would see how weird my family was and leave me in a heartbeat.

I sighed with frustration; I couldn't handle this anymore. Nick was going to be normal in my eyes—I didn't care what I had to do. I was going to pretend like his skin wasn't cold. I was going to pretend like he wasn't connected to my family. I was going to pretend like there wasn't something more to him. I was going to pretend like he was a normal teenager—a normal teenager like I was going to pretend to be.

Is it still considered a lie when you tell it to yourself?


	10. Chapter Nine

**Chapter Nine**

‡

**Bella**

I walked into our room and saw Edward sitting on the bed, his elbows on his lap and his beautiful face in his marble hands. I knew this meant that he was deep in thought, most likely concerned about something that was currently bothering him. I slowly walked up behind him, wrapping my arms around his muscular chest before I kissed the back of his head. I gently rested my chin on his shoulder, missing the feeling of his deep, even breathing.

It was silent for a moment as we both stood as still as stone. I waited patiently, wishing he would tell me what was wrong. He had been fine when we walked through the door. He had talked with Nessie for a minute when I went to check on Jacob—maybe she had said something that upset him, although I couldn't imagine what. Nessie had always been the perfect child—she had never said or done anything serious enough to truly make Edward or me angry with her.

"She was thinking about a motorcycle," he finally mumbled, breaking out of his statue-like trance.

I quickly scrambled next to him on the bed, glaring at him furiously. Edward had done the one thing Carlisle had always told him not to do on the very night he reminded him not to do it—he read Nessie's mind. "You know you're supposed to leave her alone!" I whispered sharply.

"She was thinking about a motorcycle," he repeated softly, seemingly unashamed about what he had done.

"Motorcycles? What does that have to do with anything?" I snapped, throwing my hands up in the air in frustration.

"Not motorcycles in general. One motorcycle. When we got home, she was thinking about one specific motorcycle."

I gave him a questioning look, still not understanding the dilemma of our daughter thinking about a meaningless motorcycle.

"She was riding one earlier with some boy," he explained, practically growling as he said the words out loud.

I was silent for a minute as I contemplated my only daughter riding on the back of a boy's motorcycle. I supposed I should be as upset as Edward—parents typically got upset about these kinds of things. However, I could not help but feel somewhat ecstatic—my daughter was finally behaving like a teenager instead of the young adult that she mentally and emotionally was. These kinds of spontaneous, immature teenage things were exactly why we moved back to Washington in the first place—so she could live a normal life until we were forced to change her into one of us. I knew it would take a lot of convincing on my part to make Edward agree with me that we should not react to this situation. He had always been so protective of her ever since we moved back to Washington. I think he was afraid that we were going to lose her before she was changed and had the opportunity to rediscover who she truly was. What he did not realize was that by limiting her freedom, we were defeating the entire purpose of the move.

"Are you sure?" I asked quietly, pretending like I was shocked by the startling statement.

"Positive. It was with that boy that she studied at the library with," he growled softly. I watched as his hands began to clench into tight fists as his mind probably filled with vivid images of it—Nessie's private memories that were in her own head where she innocently assumed no one would discover them.

"Was she thinking about him too?"

"No, she started with what the motorcycle looked like and then what it was like to ride on it. She was just about to think about the boy when she started talking to us about Jake being asleep. She's in so much trouble..."

"Now, Edward, I know you want to yell at her..."

"I don't want to; I have to! What kind of a father would I be if I let her ride on one of those death machines with a boy that we don't even know?"

"A father that can't read his daughter's mind. You promised, Edward." I glared at him, trying to make my eyes as intense as his currently were, but knowing that I probably wasn't even coming close. He was absolutely livid about this situation—and I had to calm him down before he went ballistic on Nessie. He would probably tell her that she was forbidden to see Nick anymore, and being the perfect daughter she was, she would obey him. "You promised that you would stay out of her thoughts."

He closed his eyes and began to shake his head slowly, a sign that he was extremely frustrated. But I didn't care—I was not backing down until he calmed down and sincerely promised that he was never going to read her mind again. "It's so hard to tune her out when her mind is right there for me to read," he explained, though he knew that this would never be justifiable in my eyes.

I placed my hand on his cheek, gently tuning his chin to force his topaz eyes to look at me. "But you know you can do it, Edward. You're strong; you can resist anything. If that wasn't true, I certainly wouldn't be here."

He growled again, his expression grim as the memory came forth; I knew he did not like to think about what it used to be like when I was human. Thinking about how well he did resisting me did not make him feel strong as if it would other vampires—it made him feel weak. I knew he was saddened by the fact that he had been forced to try so hard to not kill the love of his life. "I'm not just going to sit by and let her get into an accident…" he said through gritted teeth.

"But she wouldn't die! Yes, she could get hurt, but she would heal fast. We're so lucky; we can't lose her that easily." I gracefully moved behind him again and began kissing the back of his tense neck, trying to get him to calm down.

He sighed deeply as the muscles in his neck instantly relaxed, causing his breathing to become deep and even again. "But still…"

"But nothing. She has the right to her own thoughts."

He bowed his head and nodded in agreement. Suddenly, he shot his head back up and turned to look at me, his eyes alight with a new idea. "But if I catch her riding it…"

I shook my head, causing him to scowl. "If you catch her riding it, you still shouldn't do anything. We always tell her we want her to have a normal life, to make friends and have fun, all the things teenagers her age should be doing-but then we lock her up. We can let her do this one thing. I mean, I rode a motorcycle, and I didn't get hurt…"

The angry glare that instantly washed over his face as he remembered my motorcycle experience with Jake made me realize that this wasn't the best example I could have given.

"She'll be fine," I said forcefully, quickly kissing him, hoping to change the subject. Edward had been furious with me after he found out I had risked my life and rode a motorcycle with Jake—but he eventually accepted it and actually brought my bike to Jake's house so I could go riding. I knew he would accept this idea as well—it was not as if Nessie was driving the motorcycle. She was simply riding with a boy who had his license.

He sighed again as his tense jaw became relaxed, something that only happened when he was sincerely apologizing. "I'm sorry."

I gave him a small smile as he opened his arms, taking me in once again. "Don't be sorry for loving your daughter," I whispered into his ear.

"I shouldn't have invaded her privacy like that."

"No, you shouldn't have," I scolded. "But I understand why you did." I kissed him again, glad to see that he was not going to do it again. It was one thing that Renesmee was going to find out that her entire family was a group of bloodthirsty vampires—that, I was pretty sure, she could handle. It would sure explain a lot of things that had been happening ever since we moved back to civilization. But it was another thing to tell her that her father could read minds—I would be utterly repulsed if I was a teenage girl and I found out my father had been reading my mind without my knowledge.

"I want to meet this boy though," Edward said softly as he used his finger to slowly trace the features of my face. "I want to make sure he is a good guy if they decide to…" he trailed off, probably not wanting to finish the sentence in case the final word would make it come true.

"…date," I said it for him, the word that we both feared but had never discussed. I had never realized before why we never talked about Nessie getting a boyfriend. She was absolutely gorgeous, and I didn't just think that because I was her mother. After all, she was half vampire and unless there was a full vampire at her school—actually, even if there was a full vampire at her school—she was definitely the prettiest girl there. However, it had never occurred to me that she could one day have a boyfriend—a boyfriend that wasn't Jacob Black. "Do you think they will?" I asked softly. I was sure he could see the fear in my eyes at this notion.

"I don't know," he whispered. "Possibly. I think she likes him a lot."

"Jake," was all I could manage to whisper.

Edward nodded. "I know. But he has to know that this was a possibility. Nessie has no idea that he's in love with her."

"Which is what we wanted," I whispered, remembering the day we had to make the painful decision of forbidding Jacob's pursue of Nessie.

He nodded gravely. "Despite our differences, I would be happy to call him my son-in-law. I could not pick a better person to take care of our daughter. But it's not as if her dating other people will throw all those possibilities out the window."

"But it's going to be hard on Jake, knowing she is with another guy."

He grabbed my hand, tangling our fingers together. "But he's strong—he can handle it. If he really loves her, he'll let her live her life."

"I guess." I said, leaning on Edward as I let my mind wonder off to happier days that were going to come, when Jake and Renesmee would finally be together. "I'll just be satisfied when we are at their wedding," I commented dreamily, picturing the day. Alice would plan the entire event, of course. Renesmee would be wearing my dress. Jacob would be at the end of the aisle, ready to take Nessie's hand into his and proclaim his love for her in front of everyone. It would be one of the best days of my life as well as the bride's—Jake and Nessie would finally be together forever.

"Bella," Edward suddenly sighed deeply, lifting his eyes to mine, his expression apologetic.

"What?" I asked, quickly sitting up.

"Bella," he said again, gently stroking my cheek. "What if they don't get married?"

I laughed softly, relaxing again as I laid back down on his chest. "Why wouldn't they get married when they're in love?"

"What if..." he stopped, hesitating, unsure if he should convey what was on his mind.

"What if…?" I prompted him to continue, sitting up as I once again became concerned.

He took my hands into his once again, raising them to his lips before gently kissing them. "What if she doesn't like him in that manner?"

"But he imprinted on her," I said softly as I pulled my hands away, wondering where all of this was coming from. Of course she liked Jake—maybe not now, but I knew she eventually would. They were meant to be together forever, just like Edward and me. It was fate; it was destiny; and the most powerful of all, it was true love.

He took a deep breath and I realized the next thought that he would express was not going to be something that I would want to hear. "That doesn't mean she'll love him back."

I quickly got up out of his arms, glaring at him furiously for even suggesting this notion. "How can you say that, Edward? Don't you want them to be together?"

"Honey, as I've said before, I could not pick anyone better for Nessie. But when we change her for good, we can't force her to love him. She has to make the decision on her own."

I took a minute to think about what he had said. I mean, I realized their relationship would be extremely unorthodox, especially after Nessie is changed into a full vampire. But it made perfect sense; he would continue to stay the same age because he would constantly have a vampire around, which would cause him not to grow older. They could be together forever, physically young but mentally and emotionally maturing with every passing day. However, as each second passed, I began understanding Edward's concerns. We did not want to force the relationship—we had to make sure that whatever she decided was what she wanted. That was the only way she was going to be truly happy. And despite everything that had happened over the years, that was sincerely what Edward, Jacob, and I had always wanted.

I suddenly became aware that once again, Edward had forced me to see a side of something that I would not normally even begin to think about. That was why we were a good team—we made each other see other perspectives, making sure that we didn't form opinions or make decisions based solely on our emotions.

"I guess you're right," I admitted with a sigh. I walked back over to the bed, realizing that he hadn't moved from it the entire time.

"Please don't worry about it, Bella," he begged softly, once again lacing his fingers with mine as he spoke. "I wasn't saying that they aren't going to fall in love—Jake said himself that the majority of people who are imprinted on end up falling in love with the werewolf as well. I just want us both to remember that when she is changed, we cannot force the relationship; she has to decide for herself."

I bowed my head and nodded slowly, once again admitting that he was correct. I did not want to force upon my daughter the notion of loving Jacob or worse, push her into a marriage that she had no desire to be in. I knew that I would have to try extremely hard to allow her to do as she wished, despite how badly I wanted them to be together.

He suddenly reached up and touched my cheek, bringing me out of my immediate thoughts but forcing an old memory to come forth—the memory of the first time we kissed. I instantly bent down and kissed him with as much passion as I had that day, when he had been practically forbidden but completely irresistible. I thought back to what it was like at the beginning, when I was all his but didn't know it, completely terrified by the thought of him leaving me. I let the memory flood through me, increasing my passion.

His breath became faster as he lay down on the bed, gently pulling me with him. I pressed my body to his, inhaling his aroma as if I had never smelled anything as sweet.

I began to feel a familiar dread, thinking that he might disappear beneath my lips if I was not careful. At the beginning I had been insecure, constantly afraid of what I might lose instead of focusing on what I had. What I had was forever; what I had was secure. I knew it, but I had not truly known it. The day I finally understood was the day he placed that ring on my finger, vowing that he would be mine forever.

And of course, I wanted that for my darling Renesmee—what loving mother didn't? And I knew beyond a doubt that the only person who could give her all of that was Jacob. He truly loved her with the same passion that I had always felt for Edward. The way that he looked at her was filled with love, filled with adoration. I couldn't think of the right words to describe it, even though I lived through it—it was the same way Edward had always looked at me and the same way I gazed at him in return. However, unlike Edward, Jacob's eyes also held a familiar fear—a fear that he was going to lose the love of his life if he wasn't careful. I remembered that fear. Jacob and I were the same—both of us knew what it was like to be completely terrified of doing something wrong and forever losing the ones we loved.

Depression suddenly filled me as I realized what was different about Jacob's current situation and my previous one. Whenever I was fearful that Edward was going to leave, that he was going to realize that I wasn't good enough for him, I could reiterate my love in hopes of increasing his love for me.

But Jacob—Jake couldn't do anything. He couldn't tell her how much he loved her, how much he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. All he could do was be the big brother he had been since the day Nessie was born—and what if Nessie could not fall in love with him after he had fulfilled that position in her life. Maybe Nessie would think it was too weird, that it was too much like falling in love with a member of her family. I knew Jacob had thought of this many times before, but I did not think he regretted anything—he would always be there for Nessie as a big brother, even if it meant losing her in the way he had been dreaming about since the day he imprinted on her.

The question was, did Nessie love him back? Did she feel the same way he felt, the way he felt when she walked into a room, said his name, laughed, cried, or fell asleep in his arms?

The door bell suddenly rang and Edward seemed surprised—apparently he had been too consumed in me to read the mind of whoever was at the door.

"Who is it?" I asked him.

He frowned, annoyed that we had been interrupted. "It's Alice."

"Oh, come on. We can take ten minutes out of our sleepless night to go talk to our favorite sister." I was surprised by the sudden laughter and happiness in my voice; I supposed I subconsciously knew that everything was going to be alright.

We quickly ran downstairs and threw open the door, revealing Alice's smiling face.

"Hi again!" she said sweetly, throwing her arms around both of us as she kissed our cheeks.

Nessie appeared around the corner in her pajamas, squealing with delight when she saw who was at the door. She immediately ran into her arms, hugging her aunt tightly.

When Nessie wasn't looking, Alice sniffed the air, making a disgusted face because of the repulsive odor. I was certain that she noticed that it was much stronger than usual.

"Is Jacob here?" she asked, looking around in search of an answer to her question.

"Yes, he's asleep in the family room," I whispered, although I didn't know why-Jacob could sleep through a hurricane.

"Alice, why don't we go into the other room and you can explain why you are here. Come on, Bella," Edward suddenly said, gently taking my arm to lead me into the kitchen. I pulled away from him, wondering why he was being so pushy. His grin could not have gotten any larger and he had a curious, mischievous look in his eye. Apparently, he liked what Alice was thinking. I looked at him questioning and then turned to Alice, who was shaking her head in disapproval.

"You can wait a minute, Edward. I need to visit with my favorite niece," she said firmly, causing Edward to roll his eyes. As she turned to Nessie, I saw that her eyes were twinkling with amusement, pleased by the fact that she was making her brother wait for whatever he was excited for. "Now, Nessie, how have you been?"

She shrugged. "I've been well, thank you. How about you?"

"Oh, wonderful, thank you," she replied sweetly.

"Are you ready now?' Edward asked impatiently, chuckling lightly.

"Oh for goodness sake, yes. Come on, Bella, into the kitchen. Nessie, you go back to bed. When Jacob wakes up, tell him I said hello."

"Okay. Bye, Aunt Alice," Nessie yawned. She embraced her aunt once again before slowly going back to the family room.

The second Nessie left, Edward hastily made his way into the kitchen. I gave Alice a confused look before we both followed him.

"What's going on you two?" I asked in a hushed undertone, just in case Nessie was listening, though I was certain she was not; she would never eavesdrop on a private conversation.

"Well, Bella, I'm just going to get right to the point," Alice began, her voice as sweet as always. "Esme and I were speaking with each other and we decided that it would be best if Edward was a part of the search party."

My eyes grew wide as I gave him a confused look. Esme had agreed with me that Edward should stay at home with Nessie and I. It was not as if Edward not going was going to hurt their search party; they had an ample amount of help, almost too much. There was no reason Edward should have to go.

Alice held up both hands in surrender, noticing that I was growing angry at her innocent suggestion. "Hear me out. It's not fair that Edward doesn't get to be a part of the action. After all, he's been in this family longer than Emmett or Jasper. He's done this plenty of times before; he is not going to get hurt."

I couldn't help but nod in agreement to this as I turned to Edward. "I know you're not going to get hurt. I have no problem with you tracking a vampire. I'm just really worried about Nessie."

He smiled understandingly, letting me know that he was not angry with my worry. I suppose it was foolish of me to think that something was going to happen with Nessie while Edward was gone. Of course Nessie and I have been alone without him. Despite everything, we had a pretty good relationship. But if he would go to track the vampire, he would be far away, his cell phone off, cut off from communication. If Nessie would finally utter her concerns, I would be alone and helpless, unable to get a hold of Edward. And I simply was not strong enough for that.

"I know you are," he said softly, his voice as loving and soothing as his expression. "And you have every right to be. But you didn't let Alice finish what she was going to say." He turned back to Alice, prompting her to continue.

"How about Nessie and you come over to Carlisle and Esme's house for a sleepover?" She paused thoughtfully, scrunching her nose. "Well, I suppose Nessie would be the only one sleeping. But it will still be quite fun, don't you think?"

I supposed that it was a good idea. Despite everything, I knew Nessie truly loved seeing her family. And for some reason, we had never done anything like this before. I looked at Edward, who was gazing at me with child-like pleading eyes. I suddenly felt embarrassed—I had been acting as if I was his mother. "Sure, that sounds like fun," I admitted with a sigh.

Alice squealed as she threw her arms around us once again. "This is going to be great! I'll decorate and we can play games, and have a fashion shows, and talk all night! Oh, Rose will be so excited!"

Edward wrapped both arms around my waist and pulled me close, kissing the side of my head in appreciation. "Is everybody still going when Emmett and Rosalie arrive home tomorrow?"

"Yes, tomorrow evening come to Carlisle and Esme's house. I'm sorry, I have to go now. I'll see you two later." She kissed us once again before leaving out the back door, shooting Edward a triumphant smile before closing the door.

"Thank you, _Mom_, for letting me go," Edward chuckled into my ear, kissing me again.

I could not help but grin at his playful teasing, despite the worries that still flooded through me. But I trusted him and knew that if I even have the slightest problem, he would be home in a heartbeat-no pun intended. As he turned to me with a mischievous look in his golden eyes, I took his hand before we hastily made our way back upstairs.

The next day was spent studying for the plethora of exams that we were going to take the following week. I was finally excited about going to college—it would give us something different to do during the day. Usually, our weekdays were spent alone together. Sometimes, we would stay home all day and sometimes we would drive or even run to other cities to shop and explore. Although our days were a monotonous, we always had a wonderful time simply being with one another. However, I _was_ ready for a change in our daily activity. When we were not alone on weekdays, we were with our siblings and Esme, hunting or just spending time together. Weekends were usually spent with them, with Nessie and Carlisle there as well. Alice, Jasper, Emmett, and Rosalie were going with us to Peninsula—I knew they were very excited for the change as well.

That evening, Nessie and I packed our things before the three of us left for Carlisle and Esme's house. Although she did not say anything about the subject, I knew Nessie was extremely excited. I smiled at this thought, pleased that Alice had suggested such a good idea. The entire car ride was filled with talking and laughing as we simply spent time in each other's company. I almost squealed with delight, an Alice-like urge that I _rarely_ felt like doing. It was from moments such as these that I knew my family was going to be okay until the truth was finally revealed. It was from moments such as these that I knew despite everything, we were happy.

When we reached Carlisle and Esme's house, I rolled my eyes as Edward and Nessie began laughing; Alice had decorated again. The entire outside was laced with multicolored lights, making the house look like a party scene instead of a family "sleepover."

Edward gave Nessie a long hug and a kiss goodbye. She had been told that he, along with her uncles and grandfather, were going on a camping trip. Jasper, Emmett, and Carlisle met Edward outside and said goodbye to Nessie and me. Finally, Edward took me into his arms and gave me a long, passionate kiss. He softly whispered his love for me in my ear, kissing me once again when he was finished. Then Carlisle, Emmett, Jasper, and Edward got into the car and drove off in search of the unwanted vampire that was in our midst.

Nessie gave me a weak smile before we made our way up to the glowing house. We were immediately greeted at the door by Alice who as usual was full of zealous energy.

"How was your honeymoon?" I asked Rose as I came into the house.

The shimmering excitement in her eyes told me more than any words could-and she knew that, which is why she only smiled at me. I smiled in return, although the love in her eyes suddenly caused me to miss Edward. I tried my best to force thoughts of him aside; he was safe and happy with one half of our family while I was safe and happy with the other.

"Oh, I know what we can do!" Alice chirped excitedly as she sat down on the floor, prompting us to do the same. "Let's talk about everything that has been happening to us lately. Nessie, you go first. How's school going?"

Nessie laughed softly at her aunt's enthusiasm. She pulled her curly hair out of her face with a hair tie as she laid down in the floor with a pillow, making herself comfortable. "It's good. Easy."

"How are your friends?" Esme wondered, her voice sweet and caring.

"They're well," Nessie replied softly.

The friends Esme was referring to were Caitlin, Matt, Josh, Rachel, and Sarah, the first people Nessie met when we moved. At first she had gone many places with them—the movies, to the mall, normal teenage social hangouts. However, when she realized that she did not enjoy hanging out with other teenagers, she stopped spending time with them and simply spoke about how she sat with them at lunch. Now, I hardly even heard her mention their names, and I believed it was because she hardly ever saw them anymore.

"Tell them about Nick, Ness," I prompted her, hoping that she would give them more information than she had given me about this mysterious boy. I still had never even seen his face. Whenever Nessie hung out with him, which was often, she would always have us drop her off at some other location in order to meet him there. We never questioned her—both Edward and I realized that she did not wish for us to meet him right now.

Nessie cheeks flushed with embarrassment at the starting of the topic. She looked around the room at her aunts and grandmother, who were now staring at her with anticipating eyes, begging to know what was going on.

"It's nothing. He's just this guy I met in school. He's very nice."

"Oh, Nessie's going to have her first boyfriend!" Rosalie exclaimed, throwing her arms around her niece.

Nessie's cheeks turned even more red at her aunt's excited outburst. "Aunt Rosie, no it's not like that. We're friends. Just _friends_."

"Well, just _friends_ or otherwise, we want to meet him as soon as possible," Alice said firmly.

Nessie simply nodded and then quickly changed the subject to the supposed camping trip, something I was pretty sure she did not believe and was simply going along with. I tried to hide my frown—she was never going to tell me anything about Nick. They had been friends for two months and for all I knew they were a couple. I would find a way to get Nessie to trust me enough to tell me about her relationship with him-I hated her keeping secrets from me. But then again, I guess it was only fair—I kept secrets from her as well.

I slowly turned my gaze to my giggling daughter. She had apparently done the same—her sparking brown eyes immediately met mine. She gave me a small smile, expressing that she loved me. Taking her hand in mine, I squeezed it gently, bringing it up to my lips to gently kiss it. As her hand brushed my cheek, I instantly saw a dozen tiny visions in my mind. She was going to school, walking quickly as if it was a place of escape. Then she was in Jacob's arms, clinging to him tightly as if she loved him more than anything in the world. The last picture would forever stay in my memory. It was some boy, just the back of his dark brown hair, standing next to a red motorcycle. I smiled—the boy was Nick. Every single image was of perfect quality, as if I had been there, looking through Nessie's eyes. Perfect pictures. Memories.

As I let her hand go, I realized what had just happened—Nessie had been using her gift without knowing it. She was _just_ using her amazing power that I had never thought I would be able to see again until she was reunited with her memories. And apparently, she had wanted to share those memories with me; her power would not have worked if she did not have some desire use it. Apparently, she _did_ want to express her feelings with people. Why she chose to keep things inside her head and heart instead of expelling them, I had no idea. But at least now I knew that she wanted to-and without knowing it, she had. Although they were only little pieces of who she was, they were enough to make me understand her a little more.

I stifled a sob as I used my vivid recollection to replay the memories once more.


	11. Chapter Ten

**Chapter Ten**

‡

**Renesmee**

Dear Diary,

Again Diary, we find ourselves in the same situation—I haven't filled your pages with my thoughts and feelings in a year and a half. I'm not going to convince you that I will write in you more often because as we both now realize, that would be a lie. But I need to get this off my chest now and what better way to do that (except for actually speaking about it to somebody) than by writing it down? So here it is:

THE TOP STRANGEST THINGS ABOUT MY FAMILY

1.) I have never seen Mom, Dad, Aunt Alice, Uncle Jasper, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Emmett, Grandpa Carlisle, or Grandma Esme eat anything. Absolutely nothing. They sometimes have food in front of them, but they never take a bite.

2.) I have never seen Mom, Dad, Aunt Alice, Uncle Jasper, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Emmett, Grandpa Carlisle, or Grandma Esme sleep.

3.) Mom, Dad, Aunt Alice, Uncle Jasper, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Emmett, Grandpa Carlisle, and Grandma Esme all have extremely cold body temperatures. I'm talking ice cold skin. Sure I also have cold skin, but theirs is ridiculous.

4.) Mom, Dad, Aunt Alice, Uncle Jasper, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Emmett, Grandpa Carlisle, and Grandma Esme all have the same eyes—intensely beautiful eyes that change colors. Sometimes they are a breathtaking shade of gold while other times they are black. Plus, Dad, Aunt Alice, and Uncle Emmett are the only biological children of my grandparents and yet their spouses all have the same color eyes. Was that one of the criteria for their future mates?

5.) Mom, Dad, Aunt Alice, Uncle Jasper, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Emmett, Grandpa Carlisle, and Grandma Esme all have pale skin. Though my skin is also pale, it is nothing compared to theirs.

6.) As the days go by, I continue to grow older, just like any normal person, while Mom, Dad, Aunt Alice, Uncle Jasper, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Emmett, Grandpa Carlisle, and Grandma Esme stay the same.

7.) When I am in school or around anybody other than my family or Jake's family, I have to pretend like Grandpa Carlisle and Grandma Esme are my parents and that my father is my brother and my mother is his wife (my sister-in-law). It has something to do with them never getting older—to the people here, my parents look just a little bit older than me. Ah, that's still extremely weird to me.

8.) I am not allowed out past dark for any reason unless I am with one of my family members or Jake. How many teenagers in this town go out at night and come home perfectly fine? A lot—not that I would go out at night anyway, due to my lack of a social life, but it would be nice to know I was allowed. I think being _that_ overprotective is considered some form of abuse…

9.) As I mentioned before, my father, Aunt Alice, and Uncle Emmett are the only biological children of my grandparents, yet my grandparents treat Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Jasper, and my mother as if they were their children too. I guess that's not _that_ weird, but still…

10.) I have already said it once, but I'm going to repeat it for emphasis: my family never ages! My grandparents look younger than my classmate's parents.

11.) In reference to numbers 1, 2, 5, 7, 9, and 11: Jake and his family are very similar to mine. A few examples: Jake never ages (Seriously—so weird.) And Jake is always with my family, and it appears that he shares the same secrets. But as much as they are alike, they are also different. For example: the fact that Jake eats and sleeps A LOT. And his skin is really warm—much warmer than the normal 96.5 body temperature (is that healthy?) I don't know about Jake—there's something more to him than meets the eye….and I think my family knows exactly what that something is.

I had never noticed any of these things while living in Alaska. I mean, the only other adults I had ever socialized with (Tanya, Kate, Eleazar, and Carmen) had the same exact characteristics. I'm smart enough to know that it is not a coincidence. Maybe if I was smarter I would have realized all of these things before. But then again, who could blame me; I truly thought that adults did not eat, sleep, or grow older. That sounds ridiculous now, but at the time it didn't. It was what I had grown up around—when you are socialized in only one specific culture, you don't think it's strange. It's just…normal. If only I could feel normal now.

Oh, I forgot, there's one more:

12.) My parents are obsessed with me "trying new things" and "being a teenager." How do they expect me to live a normal life with all of the insanity at home?

Love,

Nessie

"Come on Nessie, we're leaving in two minutes!" I heard my mother shout from downstairs.

"Then leave without me, Mother," I grumbled. I quickly threw on a jacket, aware that even though it was a warm night, being around my entire family at one time would make it feel like I was back in Alaska. I heard my name being called again.

"I'm ready," I snapped as I marched down the stairs.

"Your father's waiting in the car for us," she snapped back, grabbing her purse and quickly storming out the door. I charged after her, mocking her anger—I was definitely not elated by the fact that I was going to be spending the entire night with my family. Nick had wanted to go see a movie, but of course my parents wouldn't let me skip the family party—a very boring party, in my opinion. I guess the adults had fun, but none of my aunts or uncles had kids, so I didn't have any cousins to hang out with. My already agitated mother didn't need to know that a phone call to Nick would be my lifeline when we arrived.

"About time," I heard my father mumble as we jumped into his brand new cherry-red Lamborghini. Though he purchased new cars often, he never seemed to truly be the "obsessive car guy" type. I think he just bought the latest models because he could. My mother, on the other hand, detested the new cars my father kept buying; she would be perfectly content with anything that moved. My father never acknowledged her complaints, however and recently bought her a brand new blue Porsche.

"It wasn't me; it was our daughter," my mom retorted.

"Renesmee, I know you're mad about the movie, but you haven't seen your aunts and uncles for awhile. They miss you." My father's kind voice instantly made the anger quickly drain out of me—he was right, of course.

"They're not going to miss her anymore if she keeps acting like this…" my mother grumbled.

I rolled my eyes, anger flowing through me once more. I hadn't really even done anything to warrant her anger; I didn't know why she was so mad. Besides, even if I was acting angry, I had a right—I did not want to see my family tonight. I just didn't want to deal with the weirdness tonight. I felt sick to my stomach at the thought of facing the secrets head-on; that's what I felt like I was doing when I went to these family gatherings. I had actually thrown up before I left the house—that was how sick I got at the idea of having to witness the secrets that I could never learn about. When I went to see my entire family, I knew there were only two outcomes of the night: figure out what the secrets were or leave as clueless as I had been before. Either way, I would feel like I lost.

My dad grabbed my mother's hand and kissed her wedding ring. I saw a small smile form on her face—for some reason, whenever she was mad, he always could make her feel better simply by talking to or kissing her.

"How long do we have to stay tonight?" I asked quietly.

I saw my mother's lips tighten, her small smile disappearing as quickly as it had come. "You'll leave when we leave."

I rolled my eyes again as I laid my head on the car door, sighing with frustration.

"Nessie…" my father warned in the smooth voice that always made me feel guilty for upsetting him. "We'll probably only stay for an hour, darling."

"Okay," I replied, letting the usual sweetness of my voice flood back. There was no point in acting like this; I knew they meant well, even my unpleasant mother. They had hardly any idea how I felt about these gatherings, and that was my own fault—I never expressed to them how I felt about anything.

To my enjoyment, the car ride was silent for the remainder of the time until we reached the enormous mansion that belonged to my grandparents (entirely too big for two people, but who cared what I thought…). I hated when my parents inquired about school, my friends, and most importantly, Nick—they were all things that I hardly liked to think about, much less discuss with my meddlesome parents. I didn't ever know what to say when they pressed me for details—they knew how awful I was at elucidating anything.

"Renesmee!" Aunt Alice, my father's sister, shouted in her high-pitched, sweet voice as we walked through the door, pushing past my parents to hug me. "Oh, have they been treating you well? Buying you clothes? Dresses for dances?" She glared at my father and then lightly smacked his shoulder. "I bet you have not bought her one dress for a dance."

"She doesn't like dances, Alice…" he chuckled, his golden eyes full of the amusement he always seemed to have when he was around his lively younger sister.

She stuck her tongue out at him and then turned her attention back to me. "We'll go shopping soon. Are you going to prom?"

I couldn't help but smile as I shook my head. "I really do hate dances, Aunt Alice."

She frowned. "Just like your mother. Oh, Jasper!" she called after she had spotted her husband. "Look, Nessie's here!"

"Hey, Ness," Uncle Jasper greeted.

"Hey, Uncle Jasper." I looked at his eyes, which were a very dark black. Everyone in my family, besides me, of course, had eyes that changed from gold to black and then back to gold. In school, I always searched for eyes that followed the same pattern. I was never successful—I suppose it was yet another peculiar thing about my family.

As he kissed the top of my head, the anger I had felt coming into the house quickly drained from me, replaced by a strange feeling of restlessness. This always happened around Uncle Jasper—there was something about him, some energy around him that made my mood alter quickly. I desperately needed to see a therapist in order to deal with all of this. But I knew even a therapist would not believe me.

I spun around quickly when I heard my name being called again.

"Nessie, over here!" Aunt Rosalie shouted, her beauty shining even from across the room.

I excused myself from the company of my aunt and uncle and quickly walked over to embrace her. "Aunt Rosie, how are you?"

"Wonderful, thank you." She stood back and looked at me from head to toe. "Goodness, you're gorgeous. It's hard to believe we're not blood-related."

I smiled, but didn't respond. That was typical Aunt Rosalie—too beautiful for her own good.

My grandparents were the next to spot me. "Nessie!" they called at the same time.

"Hi, Grandma. Hi, Grandpa," I said, hugging them both tightly.

Last but not least was my Uncle Emmett, my father's brother. "Nessie," he said, wrapping his huge, muscular arms around me.

When I was little, I used to think he'd be able to lift a car—he looked that strong. My parents used to chuckle when I told them that. "Nobody can lift cars, Nessie," they would say. But that didn't discourage me from thinking my uncle was the strongest man in the world.

"Whoa, you've grown a lot, kid," he said, measuring on himself how tall I was.

"I guess so," I replied dryly.

"You hate these family parties?"

"No—I'm just not having a very good night. But I'm glad I'm getting to see all of you guys."

"Well, I'm going to liven it up a little." He winked at me, his eyes golden eyes twinkling with excitement.

"Uncle Emmett…what are you going to do?"

He laughed softly. "You'll see."

Just then, my dad walked over and placed his hand firmly on my uncle's shoulder. "Emmett, don't even think about it…" he warned.

I frowned—he even caught other people before they did something wrong. Could he read minds or something? I almost laughed aloud at the thought; having a parent who could read minds—now _that_ would be horrible,

Uncle Emmett laughed his usually booming laugh, a sound that forced whoever was near to instantly be filled with happiness as well. "It'll be great, Edward, don't worry."

He smiled and rolled his eyes. "Well, don't bring my daughter into it."

"No way. This genius idea is all mine." The boyish grin on his face couldn't have gotten any bigger.

Aunt Rose walked back over and Uncle Emmett put an arm around her waist, pulling her close. I studied the complexity of this, which actually wasn't very complicated at all. They seemed to fit together so naturally, so effortlessly. It was the same way with my parents—they were completely attuned to one another.

"So Nessie, how's school going?" Aunt Rosalie asked sweetly before she caught a glimpse of herself in the gilded mirror that I was surprised she had not noticed before. She began fixing her golden blonde hair, parting it in different styles, each one still keeping her stunning beauty.

"It's okay, I guess," I replied, knowing that even though she was distracted due to her extreme narcissism, she was still listening.

She smiled. "Your father told me that you are in the honors program. Do you like it?"

"Yeah." I glanced at my father, who was beaming with pride at the mention of my success. "Dad already taught me most of the stuff we're learning in my classes, so it's not very challenging."

"I've told you I can get you into higher level classes, Nessie. You would do so well," my father said, glancing at my uncle, indicating that he should support him.

"I really don't want to, Dad," I mumbled, annoyed that he was bringing this subject up yet again. My father was obsessed with my getting into the highest level classes possible. I thought being in the advanced program would be enough, but apparently it wasn't; after I had told him how easy everything was, he was determined to get me to take classes with the upperclassmen. But by doing that, I would be instantly labeled as "the smart girl," which I definitely did not want. All I desired was to blend in and try to make it through high school alive.

Uncle Emmett took his cue well. "You should do it, Nessie. You're definitely smart enough and you'll get a lot more out of it. All of us took a few upper level classes when we were in high school."

Good old Aunt Rosalie stopped staring in the mirror to come to my defense. "Leave her alone. She doesn't want to be stressed out with school. Both she and I know that there are other things more important things in a teenage girl's life than grades, right, Nessie?"

"Sure," I agreed, trying to hide the reluctance in my voice. There really wasn't anything important to me than school—class was where everything made sense. George Washington would always be our first President, ten plus ten would always be twenty, and proper sentences would always contain punctuation marks. Whatever education level you were on, the basics would always hold true—there were no secrets in knowledge. Things just were what they were, black and white. And when there was more to it, I knew I could always figure it out—I always knew the answer and when I didn't, my father did.

"I'll be right back," Uncle Emmett said suddenly, kissing Aunt Rosalie on the cheek.

She twisted around, looking intensely in his eyes, as if he was trying to figure out what he was up to. "Where are you going?" she asked him suspiciously.

His smirk was innocent enough, but I could see a hint of mischief behind it. "Nowhere, darling," he reassured her.

I glanced at my father, wondering what Uncle Emmett had planned. He was distracted though, searching the room for my mother. I swear he couldn't go more than a few minutes without her at his side when they were in the same room—they were still that in love.

"Are you going to be all right for a little bit, darling?" he asked me once he had spotted her.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm just going to watch some T.V."

He nodded, pressing his cold lips to the top of my head before he left with Aunt Rosalie to talk with Mom, Grandpa, Aunt Alice, and Uncle Jasper.

I heard my stomach growl; with all of my nervousness about tonight, I had forgotten to eat dinner. I walked over to my grandmother, who was heading over to join the conversation in the center of the living room.

"Grandma, do you having anything to eat?" I asked her.

She frowned as she glanced nervously at the kitchen. "Oh, darling, I am so sorry. We've been dining out every night and I'm afraid I haven't been shopping in awhile. I can go out and get you something."

"Oh no, that's all right. I was just wondering."

"Are you sure? It's no trouble…" she offered sweetly.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks though."

After giving her a reassuring hug, I walked over to one of the couches and collapsed on it. 'They don't have any food in their house. Who doesn't have any food in their house?' I thought, very annoyed.

Suddenly, my uncle emerged from the dining room, a shoe box grasped tightly in his hand. I looked up at him, a questioning look on my face. He held one marble finger to his lips and slowly crouched down behind the couch.

Losing interest in him, I drew my cell phone out of my pocket to call Nick. As I was dialing his number, I was startled by an ear-piercing scream. I looked over and saw Aunt Rosalie standing on the couch, holding her hand over her mouth.

"Rose, come on," my father chuckled. "Are you kidding me? It's just a few mice." He walked to the other side of the room with Emmett, and I saw him give him a high-five.

"A _few_ mice?" she shrieked. "As in more than one?"

"Not in my house! Where did they go?" my grandma gasped, searching frantically under the couches.

I glanced over at Uncle Emmett, who laughing hysterically with my father. Apparently this was the outcome that he had desired, though I wondered what was going to happen to him when Aunt Rosalie found out that he was behind this.

"I'll help you, Esme," my mother said, also looking under the couches.

"Get them! Get them!" Aunt Rosalie screamed, jumping up and down on the couch, pointing to the floor.

Noise quickly filled the room as they began searching under the furniture, trying to find the mice that Uncle Emmett had set loose, most of them unaware that he had done it. A few seconds later, about ten white mice scurried into the center of the room, their little eyes similar to Aunt Rosalie's, which were still wide with fear. That's when it happened—the chaos that would forever echo in my memory.

"Jasper!" my father suddenly screamed, pure terror in his normally calm, smooth voice.

I looked over at my uncle Jasper, but could barely recognize him. His tongue was hanging out of his mouth like a dog that had just seen a juicy steak. His eyes were dark and longing, almost terrifying. Determination filled his usually tranquil face as Aunt Alice pinned his arms behind his back, swaying with him every time he tried to lunge forward.

"I can't hold him!" Aunt Alice shrieked using all her strength to restrain him. Out of nowhere, my mother was at her side, grabbing one of Uncle Jasper's arms.

"Jasper, Jasper honey you need to stop," my mother soothed, trying with all of her might to pull him out of the room.

"I'm so hungry," he whimpered, taking another mighty lunge forward that broke the grip of his restrainers.

Suddenly, my father wrapped his arms around me, blocking my view of whatever happened next. All I heard were the chilling screams from my family and a disgusting slurping noise. It almost sounded like Uncle Jasper was….no. He couldn't have been. He wasn't. There was no way he was…drinking those mice's blood. I bite my tongue, knowing that if I thought of things like that, my weak stomach would not be able to handle it.

Then there was dead silence. My father slowly lifted his arms from around me and I looked over to the center of the room. My mother was standing perfectly motionless, shock plastered on her beautiful face. Aunt Rose was in Uncle Emmett's comforting arms, apparently unaware that he had let the mice out in the first place. Grandma was staring furiously at Uncle Emmett who was looking down at the ground in shame. Grandpa and Uncle Jasper were nowhere to be found. And my father—the expression his face was beyond livid. I knew one thing for sure: I was glad I had not set the mice loose. I would hate to face the angry wrath my father looked like he was going to bestow on both of my uncles.

I felt the repulsive feeling return when I realized I had forgotten what I was most worried about. I forced myself to glance down at the carpet—it was perfectly clean. I sighed with relief; if he had eaten the mice, there would have been blood on the floor. I gagged—I never thought I would have to justify that one of my uncles didn't eat a bunch of mice.

My mother was the first to speak. "Edward…" she whispered.

"We're leaving," he snapped, charging around the couch and out the door.

I glanced at my dazed mother, unsure of what to do.

"Come, Nessie," my mother ordered gently, hastily striding after my father.

I promptly obeyed her, not daring to look back. My father, who was pacing furiously in the yard, looked up when he saw us come outside.

"Wait in the car. I'll be right out," he snarled.

I watched him furiously charge back inside, not bothering to close the front door. What was he going to do in there? "Mommy…" I said quietly, using the name I hadn't called her since I was little.

"Hush, sweetheart. It's okay. Daddy's just going to talk to Grandpa and Grandma. He's just upset. It's going to be okay."

I nodded slowly and got into the car. What the hell had happened in there? I replayed the event in my head: Uncle Emmett let a bunch of mice out of the box, Aunt Rosalie freaked out, everyone began looking under the furniture, my father suddenly screamed Uncle Jasper's name, Aunt Alice and my mother began holding him back while he struggled to get free, my father blocked what happened next, but I heard what sounded like slurping noises, and then he stormed out of the house, ordering my mother and I to do the same. Seriously, this was why I detested my family. No other family in the country could have this kind of weird thing happen to them. I wanted to break down and cry right there; these were the times I wished more than anything that I could have been born into a normal family.

My father finally came back ten minutes later, his face perfectly impassive. He hopped into the car and slammed the door so powerfully, the glass on the window shattered into hundreds of tiny pieces. I sat motionless in the back—I had never seen my father this angry before.

"Damn it," he growled.

"Edward, honey, I think I should drive," my mother said quietly.

He nodded and jumped out of the car; I could hear sickening crunch of glass at his feet. My mother gracefully slid over into the driver's seat. I looked to see if she was shaking like I was—as usual she was perfectly calm, despite my father's fury.

The ride was deathly silent—I barely breathed. When we got home, I hopped out of the car and ran straight into the house, again not daring to look behind me. I was still shaking as I quietly closed the door to my bedroom.

It was silent downstairs, and I wondered if my parents had even come into house. I was about to go down and check, when I heard footsteps—they must have been sitting in complete silence. I wondered when they were going to come up and talk to me about what had happened. But then again, maybe they wouldn't even bother. What did it matter anyway? It was only one more secret they had to keep from their daughter.

The ring of my cell phone startled me, and I answered it without looking to see who it was.

"Hello?" I snapped.

"Uh—Nessie?" the voice on the other end said.

"Oh hi, Jake," I mumbled unenthusiastically. I really did not want to talk to him. He knew what was going on. He knew everything that I dreamed to know. As far as I was concerned, he was a traitor.

"Ness, what's the matter?" he asked softly.

I sighed. "My father's just really mad."

"At you?"

"No."

"At who then?"

"Either the uncle who set a bunch of mice loose at my grandparent's house or the uncle who I think might have drunk their blood."

"Nessie did something happen tonight? Something with your uncle and…" he gulped. "…blood?"

I wanted to say 'Like I would tell you, Jacob Black. Maybe you should see how it feels to have secrets held from you,' but of course, I did not have the guts to do that.

"I don't want to talk about it," I finally said. I knew that even if I wanted to explain it, I wouldn't be able to—I was all ready horrible at explaining ordinary things, let alone something that made no sense at all.

"Do you want me to come over there? I'm right by your house."

I was silent for a moment, deep in thought. I wanted to be mad at Jake. I wanted to tell him to leave me alone. But I also wanted to feel better, and I knew nothing would make me happier at this point than to have Jake's warm arms wrapped around me.

"Sure, Jakey," I consented.

"I'll be there in two minutes, Nessie," he promised. I head the acceleration of his engine before he hung up the phone.

Right on schedule, the door bell rang, but I didn't run downstairs to answer it; I didn't want to see my parents right now. I heard Jake's gruff voice, and I assumed he was talking with my mom and dad about what had happened. After five minutes, I heard him come stomping up the steps. I ran over to my bedroom door and swung it open, immediately falling into his strong arms.

"I'm so sorry, Nessie. I know you must be freaked out," he whispered, stroking my hair.

I nodded, tears running down my cheeks. He gently wiped them off with his warm fingers and then led me to my bed. I sat in his lap and he wrapped his arms around me as he kissed the top of my head. This would normally make me extremely happy due to my enormously large crush on him, but tonight I couldn't care less—I was hurt, confused, and afraid.

"Did they tell you what happened?" I asked quietly, closing my eyes as I laid my head back on his chest.

"Yeah," he admitted.

"Do you want to tell me what happened?"

"Yeah," he repeated in the same tone.

"Are you going to tell me what happened?"

He paused, hesitating though I knew he didn't have to think about the answer. "No," he whispered. "I'm sorry, Nessie. I can't."

As usual, I nodded and was ready to let the subject drop. I wanted to scream—why couldn't I, just once, stand up to any of them and demand to be told what was happening? Right then, I realized that I didn't need to be mad at anybody but myself—I was the one who was too much of a wimp to ask some simple questions. The questions were the easy part; the answers were the hard part, and I was not the one doing the answering. So I had nothing to worry about—all I had to do was say 'Jake, what the hell happened tonight? I want answers _now_.'

I took a deep breath. This was it; the first time in my life I would actually do something to help myself get out of this constant circle of lies and secrets. I could do it.

"Jake, I…" I stopped, choking on the words: I couldn't do it. My palms were sweating. My heart was pounding. I had forgotten every word in the English language.

"Yeah, Nessie?" he asked softly.

I took another deep breath, ready to start over. "Jake, I…I want…I want…" I stammered, the words getting caught in my throat again.

He frowned, his dark eyes filling with even more worry. "You want to go to bed, don't you? I'm so sorry, Ness; you must be exhausted."

'No! No!' I thought to myself. 'I don't want to go to bed you idiot! I want some damn answers!' But I couldn't do it. I. Could. Not. Do. It. I just nodded and smiled weakly, like the idiot I was. What the hell was wrong with me? I couldn't do anything right.

One thing. One thing I needed to do for myself, and I couldn't even do it. I couldn't even begin to explain how frustrating it was to go through this: making myself sick over these stupid questions but physically not being able to ask them. I knew that if I told other people this problem, they would probably laugh at me and tell me to suck it up. But they just wouldn't understand the fact that I could not ask them. I couldn't manage to choke out the words I have wanted to ask since I moved to this stupid town and realized how strange I actually was. I deserved to go through this misery; I deserved every bit of it for being so weak.

To my dismay, Jacob interrupted my self-hating thoughts. "You're so beautiful, you know that?"

I shot a look at him, not understanding why he didn't hate me as much as I did. Then I laughed softly; I forgot that Jake would always love me. Gosh, if only he knew what I really was: a weak, pathetic, useless nobody. "Yeah right," I finally said. "Look at me compared to my knock-out family."

He extended out a hand and gently grabbed my face, forcing me to look at him. "Renesmee Carlie Cullen, I think you're the most beautiful girl in the whole world."

He softly kissed my cheek. I could feel his warm, even breath against my skin. I inhaled it—gosh he smelled good. I fought the desire to push my lips against his, to force him to love me the way I loved him.

Sure, any girl would take these words, this kind of physical contact, and assume that the guy loved them. If this was a movie, I'm sure there would be thousands of girls screaming at the screen, wanting to tell me how stupid I was for not seeing what was painfully obvious. But they would be wrong; even if there wasn't a huge age difference, there was no way that beautiful, kind, amazing Jacob Black loved me: dumb, boring, pathetic Renesmee Cullen.

A knock at my door startled me yet again—I had been so jumpy the entire day. Jacob effortlessly lifted me off his lap and placed me next to him. "Come in," he said.

I quickly shot him an angry look: it was _my_ room and I did not want whoever was at _my_ door to come inside. However, the door slowly opened anyway, revealing my father on the other side. The anger had drained from him and he looked like his normal self.

"Jacob," he said, his voice sounding more like a warning than him just saying his name.

A grin appeared on Jacob's perfect face. "I'm sorry, Edward. A guy can dream, can't he?"

My father frowned disapprovingly, an expression that would instantly make me stop whatever I was doing to deserve it. However, Jake seemed slightly amused. "Well I don't want to hear it, that's for sure."

"Understandable," Jake agreed, nodding.

I glanced at both of them, trying to figure out what they were talking about, but of course, I could not. My father turned to me, and I saw a small smile had formed on his face. Whatever he was upset with Jacob about, he had found it somewhat amusing. "Are you okay, Renesmee?"

"I'm fine," I mumbled, casting my eyes to the ground.

"We'll talk in the morning, darling," he whispered, his voice full of promise. The feeling of his lips kissing the top of my head confirmed that promise, but left me dizzy—the two extreme temperatures of the two men I loved most in this world was making me sick. He turned back to Jake. "You're welcome to sleep over, as always."

Jake smiled weakly, appreciating my father's kindness. "Thanks."

"Good night," he said quietly before closing the door.

"Good night," we repeated at the same time.

I turned to Jacob, giving him a puzzled look that begged him to tell me what they were talking about.

He shrugged apathetically, as if it wasn't a big deal. "Inside joke."

"Good joke," I mumbled sarcastically.

He suddenly sighed deeply, closing his eyes as he pulled me closer to him. "Oh, Nessie, I love you so much."

I practically grimaced; he needed to stop saying that, even if it was true. It just sounded too much like he _loved_ me.

"I love you too, Jakey," I replied softly. Now _that_ was completely true and he could take it anyway he wanted to—I loved him like a brother and more.

"Not as much as I love you. Never forget, Renesmee Cullen—no one loves you more than I do."

I rolled my eyes, smiling sweetly at him. "You're so dramatic."

"It's true though." He paused and I saw sadness suddenly flood his face. "Nessie, if I ever lost you, I don't know what I'd do. You have to promise me you'll be extra careful, especially now. You have to promise me you won't put yourself in danger. Promise?"

I paused for a few seconds, trying to understand what he was talking about. But, as usual, I had no idea. "I promise," I finally said softly.

He seemed pleased with my answer, so I felt it was okay to change the subject. I didn't want to talk about this anymore—what did he think was going to happen to me in Port Angeles, Washington? I'll die from the lack of sun?

"You can sleep in my bed tonight, if you want. I'll take the couch."

"No, no, no, I'll be fine. You get a good night's sleep," he whispered, kissing me before he walked to the other side of the room and collapsed on the leather couch.

"I'm going to get ready for bed. I bet you'll be asleep before I get back, so I'll see you in the morning. Do you need anything?"

"I'm fine, thanks, Ness. Night," he yawned.

"Night," I whispered, going into my bathroom to take a long shower.

I stared at the tiled wall, deep in thought, as I let the water warm up—what a strange night. First it was the mouse incident and now it was Jake freaking out over my safety. I thought back to the one night when my parents had come home all paranoid, looking out the window for something that apparently wasn't there—could my parent's and Jake's wariness be connected? Was there something out there that was deadly?

As I stood in the shower, I inhaled the steam and the smell of shampoo, my version of aromatherapy. I loved taking showers—I wished my problems could run off of me just like the droplets of water. Of course, not every drop of water went down the drain; many stuck to my skin and hair. But after I was done, those drops were absorbed with a gentle, warm towel. How I longed to have someone like that towel—someone who would take my problems and absorb them as their own. I laughed softly—nobody would take my problems, no matter how much they loved me.

I smiled as I pictured myself, living as a normal teenager, with two normal, forty-five year old parents. I pictured myself having real friends, friends who could come over after school to do homework, friends who could go with our family on vacation. I pictured myself going to dances, something I had always wanted but would never dare to do. I couldn't imagine having my date meet my "parents," or in reality my grandparents—that would be extremely embarrassing. They would see right through their act and realize the abnormal nature of my family.

I sighed; what was the point of wishing for a normal life if I knew I could never have one? I was only depressing myself even more. But I couldn't stop—I stood in front of the mirror, continuing to think about a normal Renesmee Cullen. I bet she would be a totally different person—cool, confident, easy-going. I bet she would have tons of friends. I bet she would have an amazing boyfriend that loved her and would do anything for her. I bet she would have parents that would never even dream of keeping anything from her.

I bet she would be truly happy.


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Chapter Eleven**

‡

**Bella**

After the fiasco at Carlisle and Esme's, I was surprised my daughter was even speaking to Edward and me. I wished I could go back into time to that night and grant Nessie her only wish of going to the movies with Nick. And not just because what had happened—also because of what didn't happen. I was a hypocrite—we wanted to let Nessie do normal things yet the one time she wanted to do something other teenagers would do, we tell her no. I had originally wanted her to go, but Edward had reminded me that she hadn't seen her family in awhile. I reluctantly agreed with him. But afterwards, while Nessie was getting ready, I felt extremely guilty for not allowing her to go. I even took my anger at myself out on her, becoming angry with her silent pouting due to the fact that she couldn't see the movie. I had just been frustrated with the situation—I had wanted Nessie to have fun, but I had also wanted her to see her family.

Right now, a week later, she seemed normal, though more of her time had been consumed by Nick. Unlike Edward, I didn't need to remind myself that how fantastic that was. Though she hardly ever spoke about him, I could tell that she absolutely adored Nick. One day, I even asked her to bring him to our house for dinner (Which I found extremely humorous—Edward, on the other hand, did not. He did not like joking about the kind of blood we should be drinking.). At the suggestion, Nessie's eyes grew wide and blood rushed to her face, causing her to blush the same tone of light pink that used to constantly grace my human cheeks. She apparently was appalled at the idea of one of her friend's meeting her parents. Though she did not realize this, I had finally realized why she would not want us to meet Nick—it wasn't just an immature teenage stage. If Nick were to meet Edward and me, we would have to be posing as her brother and her sister-in-law—and Carlisle and Esme would have to act as her parents. Due to the difficulty of the situation, it probably wouldn't be the best idea to have Nick meet our family until it was absolutely necessary.

I glanced over at Edward, who was sitting on the couch, reading the newspaper. I had another history book in my hand, trying to review the two World Wars, since Edward refused to teach them to me until I had read the books he had bought on them. Nessie was once again out with Nick. We had dropped her off at the library where she wanted to find some books before Nick met her there to take her ice skating. Edward and I both knew that this was because she still had not told us that whenever she went out with Nick, she was riding on the back of his motorcycle. This was strange for Nessie—she was always honest with us. I could not think of a time when she had ever lied to or kept anything from us, even how unhappy she was—the hurt on her face and in her eyes clearly told us how she was feeling. I couldn't even think of a time where she had sincerely disobeyed us; she had always been a near-perfect child. But then, I suppose that was part of the reason she did not want to tell us, besides the fact that she wanted to keep riding with Nick. She had always been perfect—and now it was time that she was normal.

"When is she coming home? It's been two hours and forty-five minutes already," Edward growled softly, worry flooding his voice as he glanced at his watch for the hundredth time that hour.

"Honey, relax. She'll be home soon," I whispered, reaching out to rub his arm soothingly. I looked back down at the book, suddenly losing interest in studying. I grimaced as I quickly sniffed the air in curiosity—the house still smelled horrible. I studied Edward, who had stopped breathing as well. Jake hadn't even been over as much lately, since he was still busy trying to find the vampire that was still lose in the town.

Edward sighed deeply with frustration and pulled his phone out of his pocket. "I'm going to call her." He began typing in the number quickly, not even bothering to ask me if I approved of the idea.

"No," I snapped quickly, causing him to stop immediately before giving me an annoyed glare. "Leave her alone. She's on a date."

I watched as his eyes grew wide at the last word I had said, his lips quivering with anger as he processed it. Although it was painfully obvious, I supposed he had never thought of Nessie and Nick's spending time together a date. Angrily, he picked up his paper, snapping it open before he began reading again with a vicious glare.

A few minutes later, Nessie came through the door. I glanced outside, half expecting to see Nick speed off on his motorcycle. However, no one was there. Nick must have dropped her off at the end of the street, just to make certain that we did not see her riding on it. The paper immediately dropped out of Edward's hands as he excitedly turned around, fatherly relief washing over his face when he saw that she was home.

"Hey, Mom. Hey, Dad. Sorry I'm a little late," she said as she put her shoes and coat in the closet by the front door. I took a moment to study her voice. Although she was not even describing how ice skating had gone, she sounded ecstatic—she must have had a good time. She had never been skating before, and I was worried that once she got on the ice, she wouldn't want to do it anymore. She had always been shy, reluctant to try new things. Nick must bring out the best in her—I had never known she could be as outgoing as she had been every since she met him.

"It's okay, honey. Did you have fun?" Edward asked, his tone of voice now relaxed, as if he had never been worried about her.

She smiled sweetly as she recalled her evening, her eyes dancing with happiness at the new memory. "It was fun, Daddy, thank you. I'm going to take a shower." Before we could reply to this, she hurried up the stairs and out of our sight.

I looked over at Edward, who was now frowning like a pouting child, his eyes filled with distaste and worry. I figured he was thinking about Nessie's date, finally accepting it as true based on the smile she had on her face when he had asked about it. I gave him a disapproving look, wishing he would realize that our daughter was growing up. However, even though Edward's protective nature was frustrating, it was also endearing—he cared about his daughter more than any other father I knew.

I turned away from him and began reading my book again, hoping that seeing me study would calm him down. I heard him snap his newspaper open once again. We stayed in silence, closing off our senses of smell. About twenty minutes later, Nessie came back downstairs in pajamas, her hair still wet. I looked back at her the second I heard her foot touch the first step. The way she was walking was different—usually her steps were light and graceful. Now they were heavy, shaking the grandfather clock next to the staircase as she stormed down.

She stopped in front of Edward and me, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Her expression was a mix of emotions—anger, hurt, determination. I smiled at her questioningly, wondering how she had gotten angry at us in the short amount of time she had been in the shower.

"Honey, what's wrong?" Edward asked, leaning forward in his seat as he studied her.

"I'm done with this," she answered, her voice sharp, a tone I had never heard her use before.

"Done with what, Ness?" I kept my voice happy, hoping it would help calm her down. I did not have much experience in calming my daughter down or making her feel better—she hardly ever got upset over anything. And when she did get upset, it was in the form of silent sadness or anger, the kind that I was not allowed to help heal.

Her frown turned into a smile, but it was not a smile that expressed that everything was okay. It was a liberating smile, as if she was about to do something she had been wanting to do for a long time. "I'm done with all of this," she proclaimed, her voice firm and serious, as if she was warning us. She paused for a minute, taking a deep breath before continuing. "I'm done with everything. I'm done with the hurt, I'm done with the pain, and I'm done with not knowing."

I suddenly felt a horrible feeling of dread descend over me. At that moment, I wished more than anything that I could sleep—that way, there was hope that this was only a dream. However, I knew this was far from a dream. This was my daughter, finally about to ask every single question that I had been praying she would refrain from uttering aloud since the hypnosis. I glanced over at Edward, who appeared to understand what was happening as well.

"I want to know everything right now," she continued, making icy eye contact with both Edward and me. "I want you to tell me everything I have been wondering my whole life."

"Nessie," Edward said uncertainly, hesitating due to the surprise of this situation that we never thought would actually occur.

"Renesmee, this is not the time." I made my voice angry, hoping that would stop her from continuing. However, it seemed to have the opposite effect—it seemed to make her even more determined.

"So when is the time, Mom? Cause it certainly isn't in front of my friends, when you're pretending to be my sister-in-law. It isn't when you are paranoid about whatever is out there at night. And it isn't when you aren't eating or sleeping or even aging. If it isn't any of those times, then it truly cannnot be any time at all. Am I right?"

I hesitated, taken aback. Nessie had never talked to us like this before. She had never acted like this in her entire life. She had always been a quite, shy girl. She had never raised her voice, never truly expressed her emotions. This had always worked out well for Edward and me—if she never expressed the things that bothered her, we would never have to make excuses, never have to tell her lies. Had she somehow been bound to a world of silence that she was now breaking free of? What was happening to my baby, that she would completely change her personality in an instant?

**Renesmee**

_ Ask them again. Are you right?_

The voice in my head terrified me. Where did it come from? Was I going crazy, like those schizophrenic people you see on Oprah that think they hear people talking inside their minds?

It was a male's voice, calm and perfect, ordering me to obey it in an almost polite way. The familiarity was the scariest part of the hypnotic sound. It reminded me of someone I knew, although I could not place it—but I did not have time to deal with that right now. At this very moment, I was being set free, in the truest sense I could ever imagine. I was finally doing what I had wanted to do for the past year and a half. It was a liberating feeling. The terror I felt do to my insanity disappeared quickly—whatever was wrong with me could not be a bad thing if it was breaking my frustrating silence, due a long time ago to be shattered.

_ Am I right?_ it repeated firmly, prompting me to continue.

"Am I right?" I obeyed, trying to not get frightened by the unfamiliar snarl in my own voice.

"Ye...ye...yes," my mother stammered. I had never heard my mother's flawless voice stammer. I had never seen my father look flustered. But then again, I had never been like this before.

_ Let's start with the basics, my dear child. Why don't you ask your parents why they don't eat or sleep. I'm sure you have been wondering that for quite awhile._

"Mom, Dad, why don't you eat? Why don't you sleep?" I asked, my voice sweet as usual but with much more firmness and determination.

The way my father and mother were looking at me right now was indescribable. I think if I had come downstairs with green skin and antennas, their expressions would be far less shocked.

"Nessie," my father said quietly, shaking his head in disapproval. Before tonight, my father could always influence by behavior by his approval or disapproval. But not now—I was my own person now. Actually, I suppose I wasn't my own person; I was still making decisions based on this voice in my head that told me what to do. But I believed that it was a step in the right direction.

"Nessie, what's wrong with you?" my mother asked, her voice filled with fear and grief as she tried to comprehend was happening to me. I didn't know what she expected me to say; I didn't even know what was happening to me. I was as shocked as they were. All I knew was that the person I had walked upstairs as just a little while ago was not the same person I was at this very moment.

The voice had come to me while I was putting on my pajamas. This disappointed me a little—if I was going to have a breakthrough, whether sane or otherwise, I wanted it to be a slightly more interesting situation. However, beggars can't be choosers—I took the sudden bursts of insanity as they came.

_ What's wrong with you? Why have you kept all this from me? Why won't you just tell me the truth?_

I repeated the words firmly, trying my best to convey my pain. The feeling was amazing; I was lighter, more free. I knew better than anyone how emotions could weigh you down if you did not convey them.

"You need to stop, Renesmee," my father ordered, his voice somewhat of a growl. He glared at me angrily, daring me to disobey him.

"I'm sorry, Daddy," I whispered softly, looking down at the ground. Out of the corner of my eye, I watched my parents exchanged triumphant glances—they thought they had stopped me. What they were about to find out was, I wasn't giving up on my new self. I was just getting started.

**Bella**

She was done. I had never felt happier in my entire life.

She suddenly looked up, her eyes no longer as sorry as her apology to her father had just sounded. "But I can't stop until you understand _exactly_ how I've felt ever since we moved here," she declared.

At the sound of those awful words, I immediately collapsed on the couch, letting unstoppable dread rise through me.

"Do you know what's it like to not remember anything about the first seven years of your life? I thought that was bad enough until I realized that for the next nine years of my life, my entire family kept the truth from me. You saw my pain and you said nothing. You saw how much I wanted to know what you were keeping from me and you _did_ nothing. Do you know how that makes me feel? It makes me feel like you don't love me as much as you always say you do. Because people who love their children tell them things that pertain to them—especially when their old enough to hear what those things are."

"Nessie, we want to tell you," I said quietly, my voice begging her to find truth in it. "You have to believe me. We want to tell you, but we..."

"Can't, I know," she interrupted forcefully. "But you have to try. You have to tell me who I am. You have to tell me why I feel so different from everyone else. You have to tell me."

By now she was sobbing, the tears rolling down her cheeks in a horrible representation of her immense pain. My heart ached at this sight. I didn't think I could stay in this room one minute longer—and I knew she was just getting started.

**Renesmee**

I was sobbing uncontrollably right now, struggling to keep my voice understandable. I continued pleading with my parents to tell me what they knew. I studied their faces, trying to see if they were at the point where they felt so bad for me that they would just decide to just tell me. My mother looked ready to break—her face was even paler than usual and her eyes were filled with grief from witnessing this emotional display. She knew that I wasn't just trying to get them to tell me what they knew; I was also releasing the hurt that I had held inside me since we moved to Washington. This was a much-needed discussion, despite the fact that it wasn't going very smoothly.

_ That's it. Tell them everything, Nessie. Tell them how you feel alone. Tell them how you feel like you aren't a part of the family. Tell them that this has been building inside of you for a long time. Tell them, Nessie. Tell them._

The voice's coaxing was hypnotic. When it was finished giving my next instructions, I had to snap myself back into reality, a reality that for once in my life I did not want to escape from. I couldn't begin to describe how amazing I felt at this moment. Despite my raging emotions, I couldn't help but smile at what the voice was saying—it was like it knew me better than I knew myself. It understood everything I felt, everything that I wanted to convey to my parents. And it didn't let me forget one detail, something I was extremely grateful for. If I was going to get my parents to tell me everything, I was going to need to use every single piece of my pain.

"I feel like an outsider in my own family. I get physically sick at the thought of going to family parties. I feel a multitude of emotions everyday: anger, depression, frustration. These emotions build and build inside of me, but I never express them. It's unhealthy, I know. But I couldn't control it. I couldn't do anything about it. But now I can. Now I'm doing something about it. I'm stopping it once and for all."

**Bella**

"I wish you could understand how it feels to come home with one of your friends to have your father pretending to be your brother. I wish you knew how it felt to go to a family party and have something extremely weird happen right in front of you, but you couldn't view it so you have no idea what it was. I am so frustrated. I am so confused. I hate feeling this way. Whatever is going on with our family, you can tell me. I'm old enough to hear it. I deserve to hear it."

At this point she fell to the ground, burying her face in her hands as she sobbed out all of her pain. I wondered how many times she had done this alone—cried her pain, trying to get it all out but barely touching the surface. She had held everything in for too long.

I had always thought of Nessie as the strongest person in the world; I know I would go crazy if my family was keeping things from me. I would be furious with everyone if I had to deal with the weird things Nessie had to deal with everyday. But I supposed holding everything inside like she had been doing did not make her strong—what she was doing right now made her strong. She was apparently breaking free from whatever stopped her from asking everything she longed to know—whatever that unknown barrier had been.

Despite how badly I wanted her to stop, I also wanted her to continue. I wanted her to get out everything that had been tearing her up inside. And though I could not tell her what she wanted to hear, it made me feel better to know that she was actually able to convey her pain, something she had never been able to do before.

"So what are you waiting for? Tell me! Tell me everything!" she screamed, quickly standing back up, looking at us expectantly.

"Nessie, please. We can't right now. Not while you're this upset. You don't understand what would happen if we told you right now," Edward pleaded quietly.

"I don't see the problem, Dad! Do you think I'm going to tell people? Do you think that I'm not going to be able to handle it? Daddy, I'm seventeen years old! I can deal with whatever is going to happen to me!"

The room was dead-silent for a few minutes. I didn't need to speak to or even look at Edward to know that he was deliberating whether or not to tell her. But I knew that he would eventually decide against it. We definitely needed to discuss it before we did anything. Because this wasn't just telling our daughter the truth—she would have to be changed immediately afterward. And you just didn't make decisions like that in haste.

**Renesmee**

Silence filled the room as I tried to stifle my sobs. This was it—my parents were finally going to tell me the truth. Right now, they were deciding on how they were going to tell me. I was finally going to learn who I was before my accident, who I was now. I was finally going to learn every painful secret that I had known existed since the day I brought Matt home to meet my parents. I was finally going to learn who I really was.

My father finally looked at me. "I'm sorry, Nessie. We can't," he said softly, his voice apologetic and filled with grief.

With that I ran upstairs to my room, a means of escape that would never truly let me break free.

**Bella**

Finally Edward spoke. "I'm sorry, Nessie. We can't."

My heart broke again when I saw Nessie's face—hurt, betrayed. Without a word, she ran upstairs, to deal with the new mountain of pain we had just inflicted on her.


	13. Chapter Twelve

**Chapter Twelve**

‡

**Renesmee**

I felt as if my legs could not move fast enough as I darted to my room and slammed the door. I jumped onto my bed and glared at the doorknob, waiting to attack someone who had the audacity to try to enter. No one came, so I grabbed my pillow and screamed into it, trying to release the anger that had built up for so long.

Did anyone in the world know what this felt like? Did anyone in the world care what was happening to me? I didn't do anything to deserve this—except maybe been born into the wrong family. Didn't they understand that I did not have the fortitude to handle this—the lies, the secrets, the constant worrying, the unbearable fear of the unknown. Maybe other people could deal with this, but not me. It was just too much. Maybe they sometimes wished they had another daughter just like I sometimes wished I had other parents.

I sighed as I realized how wrong I had been. I had always thought that if I just asked, my parents would tell me everything. I couldn't even begin to count the number of hours I had spent working up the courage to ask, only to find out now that it was all a waste. They were never going to tell me.

I wallowed in my misery for a few minutes, letting my unstoppable emotions take even more power over me. It wasn't self pity I was feeling—it was the pity that the people I love should feel every time they look at me. After tonight, it was clear that they hardly felt it at all. I felt myself calming down a little as I laid in bed, listening to the sound of my own breathing. I pushed thoughts of the voice I had heard out of my mind—I had enough to deal with at this very minute without having to contemplate the stableness of my own sanity.

Suddenly, I shot my head up and looked out the open window. Freedom. I knew what I had to do—I needed to leave, just for the night. I couldn't be trapped in this house anymore; the house where secrets seemed to be stuffed in the walls, closets, anywhere they would fit. The house where I was the only person in the family who didn't know what those secrets were. I was determined now—I would take one of the cars and return in the morning.

I sighed, realizing I didn't know where to go. I couldn't go to my grandparent's house—there were secrets there too. And besides, they would tell my parents that I snuck out. Aunt Rosalie and Uncle Emmett just purchased a new house, and I didn't know where it was. I knew I would always be welcome at Aunt Alice's and Uncle Jasper's house; they would never tell my parents where I was. But I didn't want to be near any family members tonight. And I didn't want to go to Nick; things were going great and I didn't want to freak him out with my weird life. There was only one person in the whole world I could go to—someone who had his share of secrets, most of them I was convinced were the same as my parents, but that I still trusted. Someone who had always been there for me. Someone who knew what I was going through.

That person was Jake. I thought of his perfect face that sympathized with me when I was upset. I thought of his muscular arms that held me tight when I was with him. I thought of his warm skin that felt like the sun on a summer afternoon. Even though I sometimes got frustrated with him for not divulging what I longed to know, I realized that when it really came down to it, I needed him. Through my frustration and anger I smiled as I thought of him—he was definitely the one who I needed to see.

I hastily grabbed my bag and filled it with clothes and things I would need for the morning. I went as fast as possible, praying that my parents did not choose now to come upstairs to talk to me. I opened my desk drawer and found the keys to the car my dad had bought me when I got my permit. He knew I hadn't really wanted a car, but I supposed he bought it for me because he didn't want me to drive his.

As I climbed out the window, I suddenly felt guilty. However, I quickly rationalized the situation as an emergency—I would literally go crazy if I had to stay in my house all night.

I strutted to the car, ecstatic that for once I would be taking control of my pathetic life. I knew that when my parents realized I was gone I would be in a lot of trouble. My dad was already extremely overprotective as it was—I could not even imagine what he would do when he found out that I drove to Jake's alone and at night, nonetheless. I clearly remembered what he had told me about going out at night. It was right after we moved to Washington, and I had gone outside one night to get some fresh air. He had startled me when he came outside too, immediately interrogating me about why I was out when it was dark. It was never a problem in Alaska, but suddenly I had this new rule to adhere to.

"Once the sun sets, you are not to go outside for any reason unless you are with your mother, me, your grandparents, one of your aunts or uncles, or..." He paused, as if he was debating on whether or not to say the last name on his list."...Jacob," he reluctantly finished.

"Okay," I acquiesced, although I badly wanted to question what he had told me.

He glanced off into the distance, sighing softly. "It's...dangerous," he finally murmured,

answering me as if he had been reading my mind.

"Oh," I whispered, unwilling to question him even though his answer was sophistry to me.

I reached the car and unlocked it with the key, not wanting the sound of the automatic locks to alert my parents, who had impeccable hearing. I got into the car, threw my bag in the back, and turned the key. Nothing. I groaned—of course the car wouldn't start now. I quickly got out and climbed back inside the house, knowing that my mother's car keys were in the kitchen. I snuck downstairs, crept through the kitchen, and grabbed the keys. I was just about to turn around to go back upstairs to repeat the escape process when my father's voice sounded in the living room.

"Are you feeling better?" he asked, his voice calm and smooth, as if we did not just have an enormous fight—the only fight we had ever had in my life.

I put the keys into my pocket and walked into the living room to find him reading a newspaper. I felt anger surge through me once again—I was upset and he was reading a newspaper. My mother was nowhere in sight, probably upstairs in her room. Did my parents even talk about what happened or was it not an important enough topic to spend even a few minutes discussing? I mentally tried to calm myself down—I just needed to talk to him for a few minutes and then I would be out of the house.

I was glad he didn't look up right when I walked in; I needed a minute to get rid of the guilty expression on my face which I was certain he would recognize. "No, but I didn't want to go to bed without saying good night."

He put his paper down and smiled at me, holding out his cold arms out for a hug. With a slight shiver I fell into them, resting my head on his shoulder while he hummed the lullaby he used to sing to me when I was little.

I heard him sigh. "You know that I love you, right?" he asked.

And with that all of the anger that I had built up just a few minutes ago was gone—why at

the sound of his soothing voice and the feeling of his loving embrace did I instantly forgive him? Our discussion would now be one without the emotion we had just experienced—it would be straight forward and as honest as possible, which truly wasn't very honest at all.

"Of course," I whispered softly.

"And you know that I do not wish to keep things from you, right?"

"I guess..." With ease he turned me around so I was looking at him. His topaz eyes were now filled with distress. I sighed—the compassionate daughter in me that loved her father more than anything in the world did not want him to be upset. "I know you don't want to keep things from me."

"I promise it will all make sense. Your mother..." He paused, and I could tell he was trying to think of the right words. "...she doesn't think that this is the right time to tell you, and..."

"And you agree," I said, more as a statement than a question.

His silence confirmed his affirmative response.

"Can you please just give me a day that you will tell me everything?" I pleaded, trying to look for longer than a few seconds into his painfully beautiful eyes.

"Your eighteenth birthday," he whispered into my ear.

"Five months?"

"Five more months and then you will know everything." He smiled as my eyes lit up with excitement at the thought—knowing everything. Hope was restored in me as I pictured the day when my parents would sit down and explain every question I had ever wondered…or since tonight, asked out loud.

"So it's a deal?" he said softly, extending out his hand.

"Okay, deal." I agreed as I firmly shook it, the touch of which sent an icy chill down my

spine. "Good night, Dad," I whispered, kissing him on the cheek before I stood up.

"Good night, love," he said, returning to his newspaper.

As I entered the kitchen, I quietly pulled the keys out of my pocket and placed them on

the counter where they belonged. As I started to turn around to go back upstairs to go to bed, I froze—I still wanted to see Jake. Even though I was much, much less upset than before, I still needed him to comfort me. I glanced at the family room, contemplating whether or not I should ask my father for a ride to Jake's house. I decided against it, knowing it was not worth my time—my father was not going to take me to Jake's this late at night. I once again grabbed the keys, determined to see the one person who would understand me.

"Ness?" I heard my father once again call from the other room. "I thought you said you were going to bed."

I went into the family room again, hoping he was going to make this conversation short.

"I was just getting a snack in the kitchen," I said, struggling to keep my voice relaxed and even—I was a horrible liar.

"Oh, okay. Well, I'm glad you're still up. I just want you to know how proud I am of you."

"Uh—thanks Dad," I replied.

"Nessie, you always make good decisions. Your mother and I appreciate you so much. I just wanted you to know that."

My mind started racing as I wondered if he was saying this because he knew I was planning on sneaking out in an effort to make me feel guilty enough to decide against it. I concluded that there was no way he could have figured it out, so I pushed the thought aside and played it off coolly.

"Thanks, Dad," I repeated. "See you later."

As I turned around to leave, I couldn't help but smile. Usually, I would break down and confess what I had done or been planning on doing, without my parents actually accusing me of it-not that I had done very much to disobey my parents. My smile quickly faded when he called my name again. When I turned around, he was on his feet.

"What is it, Daddy?" I asked, annoyed. At this rate, I was never going to get to Jake's house.

He frowned angrily. "I think you have something that doesn't belong to you."

I had to use all my willpower not to look down at my pocket. "What are you talking about?"

"You have something that doesn't belong to you," he repeated.

The beating of my heart grew louder and faster, to the point where I was sure he could hear it. "I don't have anything," I lied forcefully.

"Oh, I think that you do." I knew it was over when his angry glare fell to my pocket. "Your mother's keys."

I stifled gasped. How had he figured it out? The keys were barely visible and he couldn't have heard me in the kitchen. Realizing there was no point in lying, I slowly pulled them out. He quickly snatched them, gripping them tightly in his hand.

It was silent for a moment until I finally spoke. "I just wanted to go to Jake's," I explained.

He crossed his arms in front of his chest and stood perfectly still. To an unknowing person, he would have looked like a marble statue. I glanced around nervously, not knowing why he was staying so quiet. Maybe he realized the anticipation of what he was going to say was worse than any punishment he could think of. Finally, after what seemed like hours of painful silence, he spoke. "And what have I said about going out at night?" he almost growled.

"That it's dangerous," I answered softly.

"So please explain to me why you have the temerity to go out when it's clearly nighttime?"

"Because I want to see Jacob." I kept my gaze to the ground in order to avoid his angrily icy eyes. I could feel them anyway, glaring down at me.

"You could have called him and asked him to come over."

"I want to go to his house, and I didn't want him to have to drive all the way out here to pick me up."

It was silent for a moment and his voice somewhat startled me when he finally spoke. "Get in your mother's car. I'll take you."

I looked up, my eyes wide with surprise. "Are you serious?"

He nodded as he tried to keep his expression angry, although I could see a hint of a smile forming on his face.

"Oh thank you, Daddy!" I exclaimed, throwing my arms around him.

"Hurry now," he ordered gently. "I'll meet you in the car in a minute."

I obediently ran outside, but froze near the door when I heard my mother enter the living room. "Where are you going, Edward?" she asked, her voice full of concern.

"I'm taking her to Jacob's house."

I heard her gulp. "Jake's house?"

"She was going to take the car by herself..." he explained, and I heard her gasp. "...but I caught her, of course."

I scowled. He made it sound as if it was easy to catch me doing something wrong. Then again, he always did catch me. When I turned eighteen I was going to find out how he always knew what I was going to do before I did it.

"Edward..." my mother began to say. It sounded as if she was angry. Good—she should be angry about him catching me all the time. How would I ever learn to get away with anything? I could not help but smile; if only parents really thought like that.

"Hush love; we'll talk when I get home." I heard them kiss before I quickly ran to car.

We rode in silence for the majority of the way. I looked out the window, watching the trees blur by, wondering what could be so dangerous about going outside at night. Was there something out there that I should be deathly afraid of? Or was it just my dad, being his usual, overprotective self? I settled on the second theory—really, what could be so dangerous in Port Angeles, Washington?

My father interrupted my thoughts, asking me about school and all of the good friends he thought I had. My parents had always wanted me to have a lot of friends since I didn't have any growing up. They had been beyond excited to learn that I had found a large group of people to sit with at lunch. I couldn't bear to tell him that I had moved lunch tables and was happily sitting alone with Nick.

Despite how angry I was for getting caught, I was glad that he was driving; it usually took an hour to get there, but with the way my dad drove (very, very, very, very fast), it only took twenty- five minutes. We reached Jake's small, cozy house in LaPush in record time. My father began walking to the front door while I got my bag, which was still in the back seat. He knocked, but too quietly; I was certain that no one could have heard it from inside. However, he stood there patiently, waiting for someone to open the door. I was about to suggest knocking louder when the door slowly creaked open, revealing Jake's surprised face.

"Hey, Edward. What's..." He stopped when he saw me coming up the walk. "Nessie," he said softly before turning his attention back to my father. "Is everything okay?" he asked sharply, apparently concerned at the spontaneity of this visit.

My father nodded. "She wants to see you. Can she stay the night?"

"Of course!" Jake exclaimed, apparently as excited as I was.

"All right then. I'll pick her up in the morning." He turned to me, his eyes soft now. "Be good," he whispered, kissing my forehead.

I watched him walk back to his car before I turned to Jake.

I gave him a helpless look as I walked toward him. "Jakey," I sighed as I fell into his arms, not caring that my father was probably still watching, analyzing my every move in act of fatherly protectiveness.

To my pleasure held me for a minute—the temperature of his skin felt good after being around my father in the chilling night air. I felt my romantic interests come forth again, like a sickness that could not be cured. I tried to push the thoughts aside, reminding myself that Jake would never feel that way about me.

Finally, he grabbed my bag and my hand and gently pulled me inside. He collapsed on the couch and patted the seat next to him, indicating for me to sit down.

"Cold?" he asked, putting his warm arms around me before I could even answer.

I nodded, snuggling closer to him. Finally, I was in Jake's arms.

"How are you?" he asked softly, stroking my hair.

I sighed again. "Not well."

"Is it your parents?"

I nodded again. "I'm surprised my dad drove me over here. I had just been about to sneak out when he caught me."

Jake's smile dropped immediately. He released his grip and turned to look at me, his expression almost as angry as my father's had been. "You were going to drive over here by yourself? You only have your permit."

I laughed softly, though I was wondering why he was being so belligerent tonight when he knew I was upset. "Jake, my father taught me how to drive when I was twelve. I think I could have handled it."

"That's illegal, Nessie."

I rolled my eyes. "But necessary, Jake. I couldn't stay in that house tonight. Besides, you said that you used to drive all the time when you had your permit."

He shifted uncomfortably. "Well, that's different," he mumbled.

"How is it different?"

"It just is. It was stupid of me to do it, and I don't want you doing it either. You can get seriously hurt and it's illegal. Your grandpa is the chief of police in Forks for crying out loud. And you know better than to go out alone at night."

"Who are you, my father?" I snapped, glaring at him.

He paused, clearing thinking about what he had just said. "Nessie, I'm sorry. But he's right: dangerous things come out at night. You should remember that."

There it was—finally, a small answer to my question. I guess it wasn't just my father being overprotective. If Jake, who was usually calm and rational was freaking out about this then it must be real—there truly was something out there that I should be afraid of. But then again, other kids went out almost every night with their friends; why didn't they have to be afraid of the dangerous things that come out? I sighed as I realized what had just happened—my question was answered, but with that answer came even more questions. It was never going to end.

"I don't know why you're freaking out about this," I finally said, pushing the thoughts aside. "You're usually begging me to come stay with you."

He sighed and pulled me close to him again. "Ness, I'm glad you're here."

"None of that matters anyway—he caught me before I even got to the car." I groaned obnoxiously. "How does he always catch me? I can't get away with anything around him."

His mood immediately lightened up as he laughed softly, playing with my hair. He lovingly pressed his warm lips to the top of my head. I wished he wouldn't do that—it only made it harder to think that he was only doing it out of "sisterly affection," and not because he was attracted to me. "It's a dad thing," he explained. "He loves about you so he watches extra carefully to make sure you stay safe."

"Well, I can stay safe on my own, thank you very much. I am not incompetent…I mean, I'm not stupid."

He laughed softly—he always made fun of me for my big vocabulary. "I know you're not, Nessie. You can take care of yourself. But lighten up on your dad—he cares about you."

"I know," I admitted.

We laid in silence for a few minutes, which was not uncommon for us. We were the kind of friends that didn't need to be constantly talking to each other—we could just be together. I listened to the sound of his deep breathing and his steady heartbeat, the two sounds I loved most in this world because in order to hear them both, I had to be in his arms.

"What are you thinking about?" he whispered in my ear.

A small yawn escaped from me before I could answer—the warmth of his body was making me tired.

He started to sit up. "You look exhausted. I'll go make you a bed."

"No," I protested sleepily. "Please. I want to sleep right here, in your arms."

"Okay." He smiled, pulling me closer before lying down. "Do you want a pillow?"

I shook my head, staring up at the ceiling fan, which thankfully was on. It was going to get really hot sleeping in Jake's arms, but I didn't care. "No, this is perfect. Are you comfortable?"

"Of course. Are you?"

"Of course. Oh and Jakey?"

"Yeah?"

"To answer your question from before, I'm thinking about you."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, and how...how great of a friend you are to me."

"Well, thanks Nessie. You're a great friend too."

"And Jakey?"

"Yeah?"

"I want you to be with me forever. Please. No matter what." I paused, thinking about what I had just admitted-a deep, dark secret that had been written on my face since I realized my love for Jacob Black. "That's a big promise to make, isn't it?"

"Yes, it is. But you know what? I'll keep it."

I closed my eyes and smiled. "Jake, I...I'm..." But I fell asleep before I could finish the most important thing I had ever wanted to tell anyone—a simple sentence that was filled with more truth than I had ever experienced in my entire life.

I'm falling in love with you.


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Chapter Thirteen**

‡

**Bella**

As I waited for Edward to come home, my anger grew with every passing second. How could he listen to her thoughts again? After she had just opened up her entire soul for us to see, he secretly betrayed her. Did he not feel any guilt for all the pain we, her parents, the people who are supposed to love and care for her, have caused her? Did he want to rip away her last retreat from this life of lies she had been forced to endure?

I was about to call his cell phone to find out what was taking him so long, when the door slowly swung open. Edward came strolling in the house, his domineer calm as he approached me.

"You…" I started, charging toward him with extreme hast after having plenty of time to prepare for a vicious verbal attack. However, before I could begin yelling, he put a marble finger to my lips, immediately silencing me. I felt an additional surge of anger rise through me when I noticed that his twinkling eyes made him look slightly amused. Did he think this was funny?

"Let me explain, love," he whispered, leaning forward to kiss me. I quickly turned away, knowing that if our lips touched even the slightest bit, the anger would drain out of me and all would be forgiven. He was not getting away with what he had done _tha_t easily. He nodded understandingly and gently pulled me to the couch.

"I didn't read her thoughts…" he immediately began.

I knew this was the start of his scripted speech, a speech that he had an ample amount of time to practice in the car. I scowled, rolling my eyes at his pathetic attempt to lie to me. "Sure you didn't."

He furrowed his eyebrows, as if he didn't understand why I didn't believe him. "Really, honey, I didn't."

"Then how did you know she was going to sneak out?" I snapped.

He took a deep breath, pausing for a moment, probably trying to word his justification correctly. I wished that he would realize that it was pointless—there was no possible way he would be able to justify going into my little girl's head once again. "Bella, when you wanted to get away from your father, where did you want to go?" he finally asked, looking at me through frustrated eyes.

I shrugged apathetically as I forced myself to turn away from him—even when I was angry, it was hard not to look to be entranced by his beautiful face.

"Bella, where did you want to go?" he repeated gently. I felt him touch my arm, silently begging me to look at him.

I sighed with frustration, slowly turning back to him. "To you."

"Exactly. So I figured she either wanted to go to Jake's or…" He frowned, hesitating as he deliberated whether or not to say the next part of his sentence."…Nick's house," he finally mumbled, a low growl rumbling through his chest as he spoke the words that he wished were not true. He still was not enthused by the fact that Nessie spent a majority of her time with Nick, riding on the back of his motorcycle.

"So how did you stop her from going?"

"Since I knew that she was going to sneak out, I took the battery out of her car, probably before she even thought of it herself…"

"You took the battery out of her car? How many people have you done that to?" I asked angrily, remembering the time he had done that to me when I had attempted to drive to LaPush to see Jacob.

He laughed quietly. "You wanted to go talk to a potentially deadly, love sick werewolf about how you didn't have feelings for him."

We both knew that his actions had been well intended and probably correct, but even nine years later I was not going to admit it. "You swear you didn't know?" I asked, changing the subject back to Renesmee.

"It was just a guess." The look in his gleaming eyes was truthful and genuine, something a wife could easily recognize in the eyes of her husband.

"Okay." I gave him his overdue kiss, keeping my lips on his for a few seconds longer than usual as an apology. "Thank you for keeping our little girl safe."

His frown turned into a small smile as he stroked my check lovingly, pleased that we were no longer fighting. "You're welcome, love."

I laid my head on his shoulder and sighed; there was one more thing I had been wishing to talk about with him, and I supposed now was as good as a time as ever. It was something I needed to discuss ever since we moved back to Washington, but I had never been brave enough to actually bring up. But preceding the horrible event that had taken place this evening, I knew I could not delay discussing it with him any longer. I took a deep breath, ready to do one of the hardest things I had ever done in my life.

"Edward?" I whispered quietly, making my voice barely audible. I suppose I subconsciously hoped that if he didn't hear me say his name, I would not repeat it and we would never have to have the painful discussion.

My hopes were dashed when at the sound of his name, he smiled down at me, his eyes gleaming with happiness. "Yes, Bella?" he asked. However, the second he saw the painful, distressed expression on my face, he began growing worried. He immediately sat up, turning his body toward me.

"Is she..." I stopped, unable to go on. Why I wasn't able to go on, I did not know. Even though I constantly denied it, I already knew what the answer was. I could feel the answer, deep down in the heart I knew I didn't have. And the answer hurt—it hurt badly, worse than any pain I had ever felt. But still, I knew what it was.

"Is she what?" he asked softly, reaching out to push a strand of my hair behind my ears.

I inhaled deeply again—I could do this. I had to do this. I had to hear it from Edward or I would keep denying it forever. "Is she...miserable?" The second I said the word, panic overtook me. I wished I could take it back. I wished I could continue going about my life thinking that Nessie was strong enough to handle all this, that she really wasn't miserable because she was able to deal with it by herself. But I knew that as a mother, I could not do that. I had been a factor in my child's pain—I had to deal with the consequences, the consequences of having to finally admit the fact that I had hurt her so badly and that she could not handle it on her own.

Edward looked down at me, the pain in his eyes even more apparent as he stared into mine. "Yes and no."

A small sob escaped from my throat, and Edward immediately pulled me close to him. The way he held me reminded me of how used to hold me when I was human—he wasn't just hugging me, he was protecting me. And this time, he was protecting me not from someone, but something—he was protecting me from the painful reality of the truth.

"I wouldn't go as far as to say she's miserable. She's just very unhappy," he murmured.

"Why does she feel like this?" I demanded, sitting up, pulling away from him so I could look at his face.

He stood up quickly and began angrily pacing across the floor. He wasn't mad at me—he was furious at the horrible situation we now found ourselves in, the situation that we did not cause, but were definitely a part of. We should have stood up to the Volturi—we should have refused to obey them. If we loved our daughter like we always said we did, we should have prevented this from ever happening.

"She's confused, Bella," he explained, suddenly kneeling down in front of me, taking both of my hands in his.

"Confused…" I mumbled in disgust, as if Nessie had no right to be confused. Maybe she shouldn't have gone ballistic on us like she had tonight. Maybe she should just accept the fact that we were different and push it to the back of her mind. However, I knew everything I was thinking was absolutely ludicrous—she had every right to be angry with us about this entire situation.

"Do you blame her?" Edward said quietly, enunciating every word in fury. "Everything she's said tonight, all the emotion, all the hurt she was conveying had been built up for a year and a half."

"When we moved to Washington," I whispered.

"Exactly. Before we moved here she had no reason to suspect anything. Nothing seemed strange to her until we moved to a town where it all suddenly became strange. She's made a list of things she doesn't understand…"

"A list?" I asked, my voice sharp with the surprise of this new fact. "What's on it?"

"Everything, Bella. Why we don't eat. And why we don't age. And why Jake seems to have some of the same secrets."

"Why was tonight the only night that she has ever said anything?"

He looked away and I could tell he was waiting for me to say we didn't have to talk about it anymore. As much as I would have loved to drop the subject, I wasn't finished learning what I should have found out a long time ago. I reached out and gently pulled his face to look at me again, indicating that we were going to keep talking about this until I finally understood.

"I have known ever since we moved here that one day, it was going to be too much for her—all of the secrets, pretending to be normal when she knew almost as well as we do that we aren't. But it was hard for me to figure out why she never said anything before this, why she kept it all inside for so long." He paused, closing his eyes as he pictured everything he had seen that led him to his painful conclusion. "Bella, do you remember when she was little and whenever she had to explain something, she would use her gift?"

I smiled, remembering the amazing gift she had at such a young age. I longed to see those pictures again, the memories she had shared with us during her childhood. "Of course," I finally said. "But what does that have to do with…"

"She used her gift because she wasn't, and still isn't, good at explaining things. She doesn't know how to ask the questions. She doesn't know how to get us to understand how she feels."

"But if she wanted to know so badly, why didn't she just try to ask them? It couldn't hurt to try…"

"That's the other part; I truly think she is terrified of what the answers are. She doesn't have any idea what is going on, but she doesn't think that it's good."

"But it is good! It's amazing! It's the most amazing thing that could ever happen to her. She's so different, so unique. She…"

"Bella, Bella…" Edward soothed, taking me in his arms once more. "Hush love, I know."

"I just wish she knew. I wish we could tell her," I whispered softly.

"Well, we have to decide: do we tell her now that she's asking questions or do we wait five months as planned?"

There it was again: another choice. Another life changing choice that we were forced to make for our daughter. Our daughter, who didn't deserve any of this. Our daughter, who should be living a normal life with no secrets. Our daughter, whose pain I could feel as if it were my own.

I supposed it wasn't that big of a deal to change her now—five months wasn't gong to make much of a difference. After all, now that she had finally told us everything she had been thinking and feeling for the past year and a half, the next five months were most likely going to be pure hell. We were better off changing her—for both her sake and ours.

I was about to tell Edward what I thought we should do when suddenly a powerful memory overtook me. It was over the span of a few years, back to the time when I wanted Edward to change me into a vampire. I had wanted that more than anything thing in the entire world—to finally be with him forever and always. I absolutely loathed how he constantly reminded me of what I would be missing if I were to be changed. Edward was willing to change me, but he wanted me to live out my life a little before he did. I didn't understand him then; I wanted to be changed so badly, I didn't care about the other things.

It's not that I cared so much now either. But for my daughter, Renesmee Carlie Cullen, my little girl, born half of my world, half of her father's, I wanted the best. I wanted her to live out the last five months of her human life. I wanted her to go to a high school dance, make some friends, and have a boyfriend. I wanted her to discover herself—what she liked, what she disliked, and the dreams she had. I was complete when I was changed; I had found Edward. But when I looked into Renesmee's eyes, I could see that she wasn't whole. There was a part of her missing, a part of her that she needed to discover. I didn't know what that part was, but I would give her those last five months to find it. I couldn't live with myself if I robbed her of that.

"We wait," I finally said. Those two simple yet powerful words sent an eerie chill down my spine; I might have just granted my daughter five more months of pure misery. But if there was the slightest chance she would find happiness in those five months, I was going to give it to her.

He simply nodded, but I was certain that he felt as passionate as I did—it was the same way that he felt when I was human and wanted to be changed.

"But we'll not only wait," I continued. "We'll get her to have the best five months of her life. We'll go on a family vacation. We'll encourage her relationship with Nick. He can take her to prom. We'll buy her a gorgeous dress and rent a limo. We'll take all of her friends to the beach one weekend and have a cookout. And we'll celebrate her eighteenth birthday—we'll have a huge party at Carlisle and Esme's house. She'll get to do everything that she's missed out on over the years."

"Prom? Parties? This doesn't sound like you…"

I laughed, feeling lighter as I thought about all we were going to do for our daughter. WE were going to give her the life she had always dreamed of—and with that new life, she will no longer focus on the secrets. "As long as I'm not the center of attention, I'm okay with it."

"Okay then, it's decided. Five months of pure fun and then we change her."

As we shook hands, I noticed a hint of fear and uncertainty in his eyes. He probably noticed it in my eyes as well, but neither of us said anything. We both knew that even with this plan, we could have some problems within the next few months. Something big was going to happen. I could feel it and I was certain Edward could too. But I also knew that whatever it was, our family was strong enough to handle it.

At least, I hoped we were strong enough.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**Chapter Fourteen**

‡

**Renesmee**

When I woke up, I was still in Jake's comforting arms. I sat up and placed my hand to my forehead, which was drenched with sweat—that was what I got for sleeping in the arms of a guy whose body temperature resembled a sauna. Jake was still sleeping, so I quietly pulled myself out of his tight grasp and tiptoed into the kitchen to cool myself down with a drink.

I looked around the little house that he and his father, Billy lived in. I wished I could live here; I bet Jacob had the best life. His house was so warm, so pleasant and inviting. It was just his father and him—none of his brothers lived at home. I knew a couple of them were married, but some of them were still in high school. I hadn't ever thought about it before; why they didn't live with Jake and his father? I cringed as I realized it was yet another unanswered question.

I was pulled out of my thoughts as I heard a loud thump come from the living room. I quickly walked back in to find Jake on the floor. I would have assumed that falling off the couch would have startled him awake, but he kept on snoring. I laughed quietly—nothing could wake him up.

I walked back into the kitchen and sat down at the table, burying my face in my arms. I thought back to last night; had that really been me, asking all of those questions? How did I go from being terrified to even utter the word "why," to screaming at my parents to give me answers? Then I remembered: the voice. The smooth, perfect voice that told me what I needed to say.

Was I crazy? Did I really hear a voice? I wanted to tell myself that I didn't hear it, but that would be a lie. It was as real as if someone had been standing there talking to me. And it reminded me of someone I knew. But whose voice was it?

_ Look in the drawer_, the smooth, perfect voice suddenly said, as clear as if it was right next to me.

I shot my head up, looking around the room, terrified. Of course there was no one there. I laughed softly; thinking about the voice actually made me imagine it. It was crazy the way the human mind worked. I remembered my father explaining it to me—I had always been very interested in the brain.

_ Look in the drawer_, it ordered again.

My heart started beating faster, matching my breathing, which would almost be considered hyperventilating. I realized what this meant; I was now clinically insane.

_ Do it now_, it hissed.

Robotically I stood up and walked over to the kitchen counter. I gently placed a shaking finger on the drawer directly in front of me, looking around the room, wondering if it was the drawer the voice was referring to.

_ Yes, open it._

With my hand still trembling, I slowly pulled it open, half expecting the person who had been speaking to be residing in it. I sighed with relief when I saw that inside it was just a stack of take-out menus, an old phone book, and some junk mail.

"It's just a bunch of papers," I whispered to nobody.

But somebody answered. _Silly girl, rummage through them please, _it ordered calmly.

I obediently flipped through the papers, searching frivolously for what the voice wanted me to find. I saw something that caught my eye—a photograph. Not just any photo: a picture of Jake and me. I didn't recognize the area where the picture was taken, so I figured I had to have been six or seven years old in it, before the accident. I examined the carefree little girl, a huge smile plastered on her face as she looked up at her best friend sitting next to her. I had thought the world of Jake back then—I probably admired him more than my own father.

_Look on the back._

I flipped the picture over, gasping when I saw what was on the other side. Scrawled in Jake's handwriting were seven simple, yet life-changing words.

Nessie and me at the Cullen's going away party.

I quickly turned it back over and examined the scene closer. The gray sky told me that we were definitely not in Phoenix, Arizona.

I remembered what Mrs. Yotzi had said, words that I had once immediately discredited as a memory from a woman who was confused.

"Now Nessie, I remember a Cullen family that lived in Forks. I was in college at the time and would only visit on the holidays, but I remember people talking about a Cullen family. Now let's see, there were a bunch of teenagers living in the house, all were either the foster kids or adopted—I can't remember which—by a very young man and his wife. I think most of them were my brother Steven's age—so probably seventeen or eighteen. I can't for the life of me remember their names or even their father's name—and he was a very prominent citizen in the community. Are they related to you, dear?"

A bunch of teenagers.

A very young man and his wife.

A prominent citizen in the community.

My parents and aunts and uncles apparently looked like teenagers.

My grandparents looked very young and even Aunt Rosalie and Uncle Jasper treated them like they were their parents.

My grandfather was a doctor—a very prominent citizen in any community he resided in.

So we had lived in Washington before my accident.

_ Now look at the boy._

I glanced to who seven-year-old me was staring at. It was just Jake—same old Jake. The guy who had always been my best friend. The guy who I had always admired and respected. The guy who loved me more than anything in this world. The grin on his face was equal to mine in the picture—loving and carefree. The same old Jake. The same old Jake. The same old…

The same old Jake. The same eyes, the same bone structure, the same hair length. The same smile, the same perfect lips, the same smooth skin. The same Jake. He hadn't changed one bit. Of course, I knew that before, but suddenly it was just hitting me. Fury flowed through my veins—why didn't he age? The questions and the queasiness I felt along with them came flooding back to me. I glared at the picture, a new representation of those horrible secrets. Even Jake, the guy who said he loved me, the guy who said he would never ever hurt me, was keeping things from me.

It was then when I realized what I had been doing—I was using my love for him as an excuse for him keeping all of these things from me. I had always told myself that it wasn't his fault— I had always called him when I was upset, I had always let him hold me while I cried. But now I realized the truth: it was his fault too. If he loved me as much as he said he did, even in a sisterly way, he would tell me who I really was.

You know when you're having a bad day and you have so much anger in you that the littlest things set you off? When you're so fed up and frustrated with life and all the crap that comes with it, you will take it out on anybody, even the people you love? Most people hate that feeling—that feeling that they're going to explode on the next person who simply looks at them with ill intent eyes. Well, imagine having that feeling every single day. But instead of actually letting out your anger, you keep it all inside you—never talking about it with anyone, never letting people know how you actually feel. This is what I felt like every day of my life. The anger, the frustration, the hurt—it constantly keeps building and building, until I'm sure that I will literally explode.

But the difference from the dark days of the past is, now I am certain that I actually have the strength to get rid of that frustration, to do away with the anger.

The determination I felt last night before I had asked my parents filled me once more; I was going to ask Jake what he knew.

"Good morning, Nessie," I heard Jake say sleepily. The sound of his voice made the anger I had just acquired instantly drain from me, but not the determination.

I glanced down and saw that I still had the kitchen drawer open, my hands grasping the picture. "Oh, Jake…I'm…I was just…"

"Looking through my kitchen drawers?" he grinned.

"Yeah, I guess. I'm really sorry…" I mumbled as I looked down at the ground, embarrassed for getting caught. But then again, wasn't that exactly what I wanted to happen? This gave me the excuse I needed to attack mercilessly.

"Don't be sorry. What's mine is yours."

I instantly shot my head up, smiling at him curiously. "Really?"

He smiled, reaching out to grab my hand, squeezing it lovingly. "Yeah."

I paused for a minute, as if I was thinking about this statement and its meaning. "Anything that's yours is mine?"

"Umm…yeah," he said, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion as he tried to figure out why I was acting so strange. "Why?"

"Because I want something, Jacob Black."

I watched the smile instantly come back to his perfect face. This was a sight I loved to see more than anything in the world, especially when I was the one to bring his smile back. However, I knew this time, I would be taking it away again—probably for a long time.

"What do you want, Renesmee Cullen?" he asked, grinning now. "If it's expensive, you better go ask your loaded father, 'cause I'm flat broke," he paused, thinking about this. "Actually, I'll buy it for you if you really want it."

"Oh, you don't have to buy it for me. You already have it."

"And _it_ would be…?"

"I want…I want…" I took a deep breath, feeling unbelievable strength that I never knew I had rise through me. "…I want what you know," I said softly.

There it was—the smile was gone, replaced by a confused frown that would soon turn into an enraged growl. "Huh?"

"I want…I want everything you know." This time I spoke a little louder, breathing in the confidence that seemed to fill me with every passing second.

"And what do I know?" The snapping in his voice told me that he understood exactly what I was asking—and he did not like it.

"Everything." I smirked, confirming to him that I was thinking exactly what he was thinking.

"Um…" He started backing up into the living room, toward the front door, like he was planning on making a quick escape, but he was not getting away that easily. I slowly started walking toward him, pointing an accusing finger in his direction.

"_You_ know why my parents don't eat. _You_ know why my parents don't sleep. _You_ know where my parents have gone when they come home acting all paranoid. _You_ know why they're so protective of me. _You_ know who I am. _You_ know Jacob Black, and I want you to tell me right now."

Fury rang in my voice with every word—the teasing was gone. This was a part of my life that I've needed to deal with for a year and a half now. Things just got a whole lot more serious.

He held up a trembling hand. "Whoa, Nessie, calm down…"

_ Renesmee, tell him you won't calm down. Tell him you want some answers now. Demand answers, Nessie. You won't get anything in life if you aren't willing to demand it._

"Tell me now!" I shrieked, obeying the voice. "I want to know now, and neither of us is leaving until I get some damn answers!"

His eyes filled with shock. What could I say—I was shocked myself. This was what I wanted myself to do all along—to demand answers and not leave until I got them. I was finally going to get what I wanted. Maybe my parents could refuse to tell me, but Jake couldn't; he could see how much I longed to know everything.

"No, Nessie. I can't. I won't," he whispered furiously, his eyes cast to the ground.

"You will, Jake!" I screamed, not letting the rejection stop me. "You will tell me right now!"

He suddenly snapped his head up, his lips quivering with fury. "You need to stop, Renesmee!" he snarled, charging up to me until he was right in my face. I felt his hot, angry breath, not daring to inhale for fear that his amazing aroma would make me fall into his arms again. I stared in his eyes, which were filled with a deadly rage.

And then there were two voices.

'This wasn't worth losing your best friend over, Nessie.' This additional voice was smooth and tranquil, resembling the other voice. However, it rang with pure concern rather than a hint of anger and almost sounded shocked at what I was doing.

_ You won't lose him, Nessie. He'll only respect you more for talking about it with him, _the other voice retorted hypnotically.

'Jake's getting angrier, Nessie. Remember what your father said about his temper.'

_ Your father has lied to you before, Nessie. He was just trying to scare you so this wouldn't happen._

'You'll find out in due time, Nessie. Only five more months.'

_ Five more month of solid torture, Nessie._

'This isn't like you, Nessie.'

_ This is you, Nessie. The real you. The part of you that yearns to know._

'What will your mother say, Nessie? She will be so hurt that you are doing this.'

_ Your mother's a liar too, Nessie. They're all liars. Every one of them. Stop the lies, Nessie. Stop the lies, Nessie. Stop the lies…_

"Enough!" I suddenly screamed, silencing the voices. I glared at Jake, who had jumped slightly at my sudden outburst. "I won't stop until you tell me every detail. _Every_ detail."

"This isn't happening," he said softly, then snapped his gaze back on me, raising his voice again. "What the hell is wrong with you, Nessie? You've never been like this before! What brought this on?"

_ When I looked in the drawer and saw the picture of me and you together_, the soothing voice said.

I waited for the other voice to come back, but there was silence. Apparently, it didn't care about me as much as I had thought. Big surprise—just like everyone else in my life.

_ When I looked in the drawer and saw the picture of me and you together_, the voice said again, its tone unchanging.

"When I looked in the drawer and saw the picture of me and you together," I finally repeated.

"What about it? God, Nessie, it's just a picture from when you were little!" he roared, kicking the kitchen table. It instantly collapsed to the ground, splintering into large pieces.

I ignored his violent outburst, trying to keep my voice steady. "Exactly. It's from when _I_ was little, Jake. _You_ look exactly the same."

"Some people just don't change…"

"Oh don't give me that crap, Jake. You know as well as I do that something's going on here, and either you tell me right now or…" I stopped. I didn't have an "or." I had never gotten that far when I practiced what I would say if I ever got some guts. Now that I had guts, I was completely lost.

"Or what?" he snarled.

"Or…I'll leave."

He rolled his eyes, crossing his strong arms in front of his chest as he leaned against the kitchen counter. "Don't be stupid, Nessie. You can leave right now. I'll _gladly_ take you home."

"No," I snapped softly, my voice almost as low as a whisper. "You don't understand. I'll leave this stupid town and everyone in it. I will run away and never come back."

He laughed softly, probably thinking that I was just being a dramatic teenager. But I knew I wasn't—I had never had time for immature teenage attitudes. I had always seen myself as above all of that. I was serious; I wasn't going to stay here and take all of this. It was tearing my up inside. I knew I was someone more than just Renesmee, daughter of Edward and Isabella Cullen. I was something much, much more. And if the people I loved most in this world weren't going to tell me who I really was, there was no point in my staying with them.

"And where will you go, Nessie?" he asked quietly, a humor-like quality in his menacing voice.

"Anywhere but here," I practically growled.

"I'll just tell your parents and then they'll lock you up and you won't be able to run away." Jake smirked, like a five year old threatening to tattle on his sister.

"I'll find a way."

"Good—leave." His seemingly veridical words practically tore my heart out. I was not expecting him to say that. I was expecting him to tell me not to go, to finally see the pain I was in and tell me everything. Even threatening to run away wouldn't make him tell me what I wanted to know. Some family—they didn't love me.

I glared at him, tears burning my eyes. "I wish I had never met you, Jacob Black."

"You know what, Renesmee Cullen, I was just thinking the same thing," he snarled, his voice low and even. "This is not worth my energy. You put everyone through hell with your selfish obsession with knowing everything that's going on. Grow up, Nessie. Just grow up."

Then I lost it—every ounce of control was gone.

I hated him.

I trembled—those were three words I'd never thought I'd use regarding my best friend in the whole world.

I slowly brought up my hand and did something I never thought I would be able to do: I swiftly slapped him across the face. Although the sound echoed throughout the small house, he didn't even flinch. I felt pain shoot through my hand, but I ignored it. I stood back waiting for the outraged reaction that I was sure was to come.

After a few minutes of silent staring, he slowly stepped forward, until he was inches from my face. I noticed that his eyes were softer, filled with regret and pain. His face was softer too, the softest I had ever seen in my life—the tough shield that for so he had long held around me was gone. He looked innocent, hurt, betrayed. I had never seen these emotions on the face of my source of strength, my protector. They scared me, telling me that everything was _not_ going to be alright.

I held perfectly still as he reached out a trembling hand and wrapped it around my back, pulling me closer to him. Then he took my face into both of his rough hands as he stared deeply into my eyes.

And then he kissed me.


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Chapter Fifteen**

‡

**Bella**

"I planned our trip," Edward said excitedly, turning away from the computer he had been working on for the majority of the early morning. I gave him a questioning look as I walked behind him to see what he had been doing. On the screen was an airport's web page with the transaction for four tickets bound for Hawaii.

I looked down at him, completely shocked and unsure if I could even speak. "Hawaii? Are you serious?" I finally choked out.

He grinned, his eyes dancing with the happiness he always felt when he knew he was making me happy as well. "You said you wanted to go on a family trip," he explained.

"Oh, Edward, she's going to be so excited." I jumped into his lap, taking his head into both of hands before firmly pressing my lips to his. It was a good thing that we didn't need to breathe, or we would have both suffocated by the time I was finished. When I finally pulled away, I kept my hands on the side of his head, looking deep into his eyes as I tried to wordlessly convey how much this meant to me. I finally let go of him and took a quick glance back at the screen, just to make sure it was still true. "Who's the fourth ticket for?"

His smile grew bigger, something that would be seemingly impossible due to how large his boyish grin had already been. His eyes were gleaming with the thoughts that were going through his mind. The pure child-like excitement on every part of his face actually made it difficult to read what he was thinking, something I had always excelled at. "The fourth ticket's for Jacob," he finally said after building a few minutes of suspense.

"Oh, Edward," I repeated, throwing my arms around him once again. "Nessie's going to absolutely love this. This is perfect. But what are we going to do about the sun? We wouldn't be able to go out during the day."

The excited look in his eye turned into one of mischief, and I smiled at him questioning once again, wondering what he had planned. "That's where Jacob comes in. He and Nessie can spend the day together while we're alone. It can be like a..." He took my hand, bringing it to his lips before he gently kissed it. "...second honeymoon."

A dreamy smile appeared on my face as I closed my eyes, sighing deeply as an image of the perfect vacation came into my thoughts. Nessie was with Jake, walking along the beach, shopping at the mall. And I was with Edward—spending the entire day together, celebrating the love that never seemed to fade.

I felt Edward's lips at the hallow base of my throat. He began kissing me from my chin down to my chest, excited by the thoughts as well. "When are we going to pick up Nessie? I can't wait to tell her the news." He continued kissing me as he spoke, his breath warm on my skin.

I sighed, taking the in the moment, pretending like my life was as perfect as it seemed right now. I found myself doing that often lately, using moments like these to pretend my life was as perfect as it used to be—before Nessie was forced to forget it. But those moments never lasted, and once they ended, I was swept back into a reality that I wanted to be a part of as much as I wanted to escape from.

I leaned my head on his shoulder, smiling as I gazed at the computer screen. "We can go now, if you want. I can't wait to see the look on her face when she finds out." I kissed him one last time before standing up. Edward printed out what he needed to save off the computer before we both headed to the car, overjoyed with excitement at the thought of telling Nessie.

Edward sped a little faster than usual as we drove to Jake's house. I prayed that Nessie wasn't still mad at me—she and I hadn't spoken since she had stormed upstairs the night before. I supposed she had talked everything out with Jacob. He always had a way of making her feel better, which was why I was pleased that Edward had taken her to his house. She needed a friend right now, someone who could comfort her in way her parents could not.

When we arrived, Edward quickly ran out to open my car door. Then we proceeded up the walkway, hand in hand. We were more than ready to finally make our daughter truly happy, something we had always longed to do.

We both froze when we heard Nessie's voice come through the open window. "What the hell was that? Get off of me!" she shrieked.

Edward glanced at me before we both ran inside to find Nessie wiping off her mouth, Jacob staring at her in horror, and a broken wooden table next to them.

The minute she saw us, Nessie's eyes widened with surprise at the timing of our arrival. She looked at her father, who was beginning to fume with anger as he figured out what had happened just as we were walking up to the house. She then turned to me, sobbing as she ran into my arms like she used to do when she was a little girl.

"Nessie, honey it's okay. What happened?" I said, stroking her hair, trying to get her to calm down.

"What happened?" Edward repeated in a snarl, glaring at the demolished table.

"He kissed me, Daddy," Nessie mumbled, ugly disgust filling her beautiful voice. I immediately turned to Jake, hoping that what she had said was a lie. Jacob's expression confirmed that it was not. He was staring at the ground with his eyes closed, looking shameful, full of regret.

"You kissed her?" Edward growled softly, glaring at Jacob with fuming eyes full of hate. "Nessie, tell me exactly what happened."

"We...we...we got into a fight and he broke that...that table. Then, the next thing I knew, he...he was kissing me," Nessie stammered, speaking slowly as if she was not sure if she wanted to explain to her furious father what had happened.

I pulled Nessie closer to me, kissing the top of her head. Then I looked back over at Jacob. I could see that his hands were trembling. I could hear that his heart was pounding. I could sense that he was barely breathing. However, I knew that he wasn't scared of what Edward was going to do to him; he was terrified that had just lost the love of his life.

"Bella, take Renesmee to the car," Edward said quietly.

"Edward…" I started, but stopped instantly at his icy glare.

"I just need Jacob to realize that what I said after his last little kissing incident applies to my daughter as well."

I thought back to what Edward was referring to—the last time Jake had kissed someone who didn't want to be kissed. That person had been me. Edward had threatened to break his jaw for me after I had broken my hand punching him. He was going to do that now for kissing his daughter after Jake had been warned not to until she was told everything.

"Wait, Dad…" Nessie said, regret now flooding her voice as she pulled away from me to look at her father.

"Go out in the car with your mother," he ordered firmly.

"But…"

"I'm just going to speak with him," Edward said gently, walking forward to give her a reassuring kiss on her forehead. She glanced back at me and then slowly nodded. As she walked out the door, she took the longer route to the door to avoid any contact with Jake. But right before she turned to go out the door, I thought I saw her give Jacob a helpless, apologetic look. Then she quickly left the house, taking extra precaution to close the door quietly, as if that would help ease the tension in the room.

Edward glared at me, waiting for me to follow her. I crossed my arms in front of my chest—I wasn't going anywhere. I wasn't going to leave Jake alone to face the angry wrath of a father protecting his daughter. No matter how strong Jacob thought he was, he was no match for Edward right now. And as much as I had wanted Edward to break Jacob's jaw after he had kissed me fifteen years ago, I definitely did not want that now. Jacob had told us how imprinting worked—though he had imprinted on her when she was a baby, he had completely fallen in love with her when she was sixteen. At seventeen and a half, she was now completely irresistible to him. I was surprised that he had lasted that long without acting on his love of her. Something she had said or done must have thrown him over the edge, to the point where he could not resist kissing her. I knew it wasn't Jacob's fault—the look on his face confirmed that. He was now terrified that he had lost Nessie forever, something he had agreed would happen if showed his love for her before she knew the entire story.

Edward sighed, knowing that I was not going to leave. He then turned to Jacob, glaring at him angrily.

"Edward, Bella, I'm so sorry," Jacob said quietly, still staring at the ground in shame.

Edward let out a low growl, dismissing Jacob's apology. "Jacob. I cannot even contemplate why you would do this. You knew you were supposed to wait until we told her."

Jacob took a deep breath before he began explaining, slowly and quietly. "This morning, she just started attacking me. She demanded me to tell her everything. Guys, it was unbelievable. I hardly recognized her, the way she was talking. I told her no, and she got even angrier. The second we started fighting, she seemed so much older. She wasn't that little girl I used to play with—she was a woman, a woman who wanted to take control of her own life. I know it sounds crazy, but as she was screaming at me, freaking out like I had never seen her do before, she looked so beautiful. I couldn't help it—I had to kiss her."

"She asked us questions too," I said quietly, processing this. Nessie had done the same thing to Jake that she had done to us. I had been hoping that she was never going to explode on us like that again. Now that my worst fears have been confirmed, our lives were about to change in an enormous way.

"She did that to you guys too?" Jacob asked, shocked as he tried to comprehend this. It was complicated to comprehend—it had taken me an entire night of thinking last night, even after Edward and I had discussed it. The question on the forefront of all three of our minds was obvious: how had Nessie gone from being quiet and shy, unable to even tell her parents or even her best friend what had been bothering her for a year and a half, to demanding us to tell her what was going on? How had Nessie become a completely new person so quickly?

"Why didn't you warn me?" Jake continued, now very angry at this new piece of information. "Last night, she was little more sarcastic and mean than usual, but I just thought that she was frustrated with the whole situation. I didn't know that she had finally snapped and asked about everything. A little heads up would have been nice."

"I thought he would have told you." I glared at Edward—it was his fault that this had happened. If he had only told Jake, he would have been prepared for Nessie asking about everything she had been confused about her entire life. If he had only told Jake, he could have prepared for this and not have acted out of the suddenness of Nessie's outburst.

"Maybe I should have told him. But that does not excuse the fact that he kissed Renesmee after being given explicate instructions never to act on his love of her," Edward said softly, annunciating every word with an angry growl. "Stay away from my daughter," he snarled at the end before hastily making his way out the door.

Jacob closed his eyes, barely breathing. I reached out to put a comforting hand on his arm, but he simply pushed it away. When he opened his eyes again, he was glaring at me in a way he never had looked at me before. His eyes were deadly, full of hate.

Slowly, I back toward the door, knowing that he was about to become very angry if I did not leave at that moment. Still watching him closely, I turned the door handle, backed outside, and shut the door, leaving Jacob to deal with a million problems that we had partially caused. I heard a menacing roar come from inside, followed by the destruction of a dozen pieces of furniture. I shuddered, knowing that the actual sound I was hearing was Jacob's pain. I quickly ran to the car where Edward and Nessie were waiting for me. I shut the door, instantly stopping the noise from my ears but not from echoing my mind.

The car ride was dead-silent. When we finally arrived home, Nessie immediately ran inside where she did not even bother shutting the door before charging up the steps. Edward did not open my door as he had always done, even when he was angry—he went straight inside as well. I followed them hesitantly, wishing I could go back to Jacob's house to speak with him about what had happened, to assure him that everything was going to be okay.

I walked inside, into a house that was filled with more tension and frustration than I had ever experienced in my life. When I went upstairs in search of Edward, I found him outside of Nessie's room, begging her to come out and speak with him. I pulled him away from his pointless attempts and led him into our room.

We stayed in silence for a minute, listening to the painful sound of our daughter's quiet sobs. Edward was the first to speak. "I can't believe he did this to her," he growled.

I glared at him, disgusted by how he wasn't seeing that it was our fault as well. "He wasn't the only one who did this to her, Edward. He was actually the one who made everything bearable for her."

He turned to me, giving me the same disgusted look I was giving him because I was once again defending Jacob. "He kissed her, Bella. He _kissed_ her. What don't you understand about that?"

"He loves her, Edward. He _loves_ her. What don't you understand about that?" I replied quietly. I hoped that my words were currently echoing through his head, giving them more effect.

He stayed silent, his eyes and mouth intense with racing thoughts as he stared at the wall, refusing to look at me. Suddenly, a low growl rumbled through his chest.

"What's wrong now?" I snapped, throwing my hands up in frustration.

He sniffed the air, growling for a second time. "He's here."

I inhaled deeply and with the air that filled my lungs came terrifying fear; the vampire was at our house.

"Get Nessie!" I shrieked before he charged out of our room, running faster than I had ever seen him run before. I ran charged after him and let out a cry when I saw my daughter's empty room.

"She's not here!" he snarled, sniffing the air once again, begging it for her scent. "Outside!"

We both darted downstairs and out the door, nearly running into Nessie, whose arms were wrapped around a boy. Not just any boy; a deadly vampire.

Before Nessie even realized that we were behind her, Edward threw himself between them, pinning the boy to the ground.

"Daddy! What are you doing?" Renesmee screamed, horrified. I quickly grabbed her in my steel arms before she could run up to them. "Daddy, leave him alone! Nick!" She was sobbing hysterically now, struggling to get out of my arms.

Nick. The boy with the motorcycle. I shuddered; our daughter had been riding on the back of a blood-thirsty vampire's motorcycle. I wanted Edward to kill him there. I wanted Edward to rip him into a thousand pieces. I wanted Edward to...

I ceased my menacing thoughts and looked down at Nessie's beautiful, terrified face. Edward needed to let him go. I couldn't even begin to imagine the nightmares my precious little girl would start having if she witnessed something like that. Even if we could somehow get her inside the house, she would still be able to hear the horrendous act.

"Edward," I begged urgently. "Please don't do this. Not in front of Nessie."

Nick snarled quietly, making sure Nessie could not hear. "She's right, Edward. You wouldn't want me to kill you in front of your pretty little daughter, now would you?" His whisper was so soft, even I had a hard time hearing him.

Edward growled again, firming the grip he had on the boy.

"Dad, please. I told him to come here. It's my fault! Please don't hurt him." Nessie pleaded through her sobs.

"Yeah man, get off of me! What the hell is your problem? I could sue you, you know!" Nick yelled, playing up the innocent act I was sure he pulled on my daughter.

Edward looked at me and Nessie, the two people he loved most in the world who were begging him not to do the one thing he wanted to do most in the world—kill the vampire who was a threat to his beloved daughter. As he looked down at Nick with a deadly glare, I prepared myself for an attack.

"I'm not going to kill you now because it would upset her," Edward suddenly growled, making certain that Nessie's innocent ears could not hear. I breathed a sigh of relief at the sound of his promise, as chilling as it was. "But know this: if you ever come near my daughter again, I will _not_ hesitate to kill you. If you even contact her again, I will _destroy_ you. I will hunt you down and rip every limb off your pathetic body. I don't give a damn if you accidentally run into her walking on the sidewalk—if I smell you on her, you better count the hours you have left, boy. You got that?"

"Loud and clear, old man," Nick cackled, a smirk forming on his face.

"Get out of here," Edward snarled softly, slowly standing up.

Nick grinned evilly, his eyes deadly. "No problem," he said before jumping on his motorcycle and speeding away.

"Oh my gosh," Nessie sobbed the second he was gone, burying her face in my shirt.

I glanced at Edward, wondering what to do. He was staring at Nessie, the blood-curtailing anger on his face replaced by confusion and fear. "Nessie," Edward whispered, placing his hand gently on her shoulder.

"Get away from me!" she screamed, before yanking out of my loosened grip and running inside.

For the second time that day, I watched her run into the house, trying to get as far away from us as possible. The sight made my heart ache; even when we were trying our best to make her happy, we were failing miserably.

"Oh, Edward," I finally cried, immediately collapsing into his strong arms like I used to do when I was a weak human. "He could have killed her," I whispered, terrified at the thought.

"Hush, darling. It's okay. Everything is okay," he soothed, holding me tightly.

"We have to go talk to her this time," I mumbled into his shoulder. "We can't leave her alone to sort all of this out anymore—it's just too much."

He kissed the top of my head in agreement and took my hand. Together, we made our way into the house, both of us unsure of what to say to our own daughter. We quietly knocked on her bedroom door.

"Go away!" we heard her shriek from the other side.

"Stay here," I whispered to him, though I longed to have him come into the room with me. This was a form of self-punishment for me—to look my daughter in the eye and see the pain that would appear to be permanently flooding them. "Nessie..." I said softly as I entered, closing the door behind me.

"Mother, go away," she sobbed, burying her face in her pillow as a means of escape.

"Renesmee, can we please talk about what happened?"

She shot her head back up, glaring at me with eyes that were much more than the on-again, off-again hormonal hate of a teenager girl to her mother.

"You want to talk about how humiliated I am?" she spat, her voice low. "You want to talk about how I'm never going to be able to show my face in school again? You want to talk about how I probably just lost the only friend I've ever had in this stupid town?"

I stood back, shocked. Before last night, Nessie had never talked like this before to anyone. She had never shown this much passion, this much emotion, this much forcefulness. I felt as if I was finally looking into her heart, seeing all the hurt she had been carrying.

"Ness, it's not what it looks like," I finally replied with a sigh.

"It's not what it looks like? So you're telling me that my father did not just run outside and tackle my best friend?"

"He's not your friend..." My voice was now a firm growl, something I had never used with my daughter.

She paused for a second, closing her eyes as she thought about what I had just said. Finally, she opened her eyes once more-the hate and anger had not escaped.

"He's my only friend." She kept her voice calm as she stated what she believed was a fact. However, she was wrong in two ways. First, he was not her only friend-she still had Jacob, regardless of what had happened earlier. And second, Nick was as far from a friend as possible-a blood-thirsty vampire. Of course, I knew as well as anyone that a person with thick blood flowing through his or her veins could be friends with a vampire and live to tell the tale. However, unlike the practices of her family, Nick fed off of humans. The proof was in his eyes, given away by his attempts to disguise it—he wore contacts, which meant that he was trying to hide the fact that they were blood-red.

After a few minutes of stony silence, I spoke once more. "What about Jacob? I mean, just because you two had a fight doesn't mean your friendship is over."

She shook her head, immediately dismissing this. "Jake's not my friend. He's a liar, just like you, Dad, and the rest of my stupid family."

"And you think Nick hasn't lied to you?"

"Nick never lies to me," she snapped firmly, though I could hear a hint of uncertainty in her voice.

"Ness, you need to listen to me; Nick is using you."

"You don't even know him," she said softly, annunciating every word.

"I know that he's dangerous."

She slowly looked up at me, pushing her bronze hair out of her face as she glared at me through those chocolate brown eyes. "Prove it," she spoke with a shrug.

I paused, taken aback. Usually she just believed whatever I told her. I never needed proof before—my word was always good enough for her. "I…I can't," I finally mumbled, unable to look her in the eye.

A watched as the corners of her mouth turned up in a vicious smirk, an expression unfamiliar to my sweet little Nessie. "Then how do you know it's true, Mom? How do you know he's this dangerous guy who's only using me because that's the _only_ way he would _ever_ be interested in _me_."

"I never said he wouldn't be interested in you," I whispered.

"How do you know it's true?" she repeated, raising her voice.

"You just have to trust me."

Her already cold stare turned even icier. "You lost my trust a long time ago. I want you and Dad to leave me alone."

"Nessie, please," I cried quietly.

"Get out of my room" she ordered with a snarl, throwing her blanket over her head as she once again retreated as far away from me as she could go at the moment.

I stayed for a few minutes, begging her to speak to me. After a few minutes of silence, I walked out the door, leaving her as alone as she currently felt.

I walked back in my room, practically shaking, something I had not known was even possible. Edward was sitting in the arm chair, his face full of worry. He held his arms out to me and just like I had a thousand times before, I snuggled close to him. However this time, although we were feeling the exact same emotions, despair separated us in a thick barrier.

"How did we never smell him on her?" Edward asked softly. "If she had been with a vampire every day, you would have thought we would have smelled him."

I thought about this for a moment. He was right; how had we never smelled him? Then I remembered what Nessie had done every single time immediately after she had hung out with Nick—she would run upstairs to take a shower.

"The motorcycle," I answered quietly. "Every day after she got home from being with Nick, she took a shower. She must have done that to get rid of the smell of the gasoline, but it must have washed off the vampire smell too."

"He probably told her to do that," Edward growled, causing me to feel the vibrations of the low rumble. "But you were home every time she came home. How did you not smell it right when she came through the door?"

"Because usually, I don't even breathe in our house unless I'm talking to Nessie. Our entire house smells like dog…"

He laughed weakly. "Do you remember when you didn't understand why we hated that smell?"

"Trust me, I understand now." I laughed along with him, suddenly feeling lighter as I forgot why I was sad. And then in unison, we both stopped, once again remembering what had happened only a few minutes ago, wondering how we had ever forgotten for those blissful brief seconds. "She hates us," I whispered softly.

With a delicate hand, he stroked my cheek, each touch causing comfort to pour through me. However, it was not enough. I knew there would _never_ be enough comfort in the world to cover up this heartache.

"It's all going to be okay, Bella," he finally said, tightening his grip on me, affirming his promise. "I _will_ fix this."

"How?" I asked firmly, for the first time in my life doubting those words. "How can you be so sure that everything is going to be alright?"

"Because I love you. And because I love Nessie. I will do whatever it takes to make things right between the three of us."

I sighed, refusing to accept the words as true. There was simply just too much going wrong right now for everything to ever be happy once more. "You act as if it's so simple."

"It _i_s simple, love. All we have to do is tell her the truth."

I quickly sat up, wondering if I had heard him right. We had just decided that we would not tell her the truth until she turned eighteen. And now he was going to go back on everything we had agreed on in addition to turning our only daughter's world upside down. "Tell her the truth?" I snapped, jumping out of his arms. "What happened to waiting five more months?"

Edward's voice remained calm as he took my hands comfortingly. "I _had_ agreed with on waiting, but then this happened…"

"You know, that's exactly what they want us to do! The Volturi want us to tell her the truth so we'll have to change her right now!"

He frowned at the idea, shaking his head slowly. "I don't think so."

"Why else would they be trying to ruin our lives?"

"Bella, as I've told you before, the Volturi don't go out of their way to make someone have a bad day. Five months would not make a difference to them…" He was beginning to grow angry as well, and for that I was grateful—if he had remained calm, almost impassionate about the subject, I would have begun to wonder if he truly cared.

"If it had potential of hurting this family, they would do it. And this clearly hurts us!"

"Now you're being ridiculous, Bella. No, there's something more to this. Something, we're not seeing…"

"We're not telling her the truth! If it's a part of their plan…"

"You'd be willing to risk your own daughter's life for that?" he suddenly shouted, standing up so that he was towering over me.

I fell silent, my eyes wide with fear and regret. What had I been doing? He was right; I was willing to risk my own daughter's life just to make sure I didn't give the Volturi what they wanted. If I was right and the Volturi just wanted to make us miserable, what harm would be done? Sure, she would lose the last five months of her human life, but was that really that bad? But if we waited, something terrible was bound to happen. We needed to tell her now.

My knees started shaking as I thought of the monster I had become. I started to fall to the ground, but Edward scooped me up in his strong arms and carried me back over to the chair, rocking me like a child. He kissed my head, my neck, and my arms, humming my lullaby.

"It's going to be okay," he whispered firmly. "I promise—I will take care of you two."

I nodded slowly, unable to move the rest of my body. For the first time since becoming an incredibly strong vampire, I felt weak and powerless. Even after the Volturi had told us our two options, I still felt like I had some power—the power to decide, to choose the destiny of my only child. But now, I had nothing. Absolutely nothing. My whole world was crashing down on me and I felt helpless to stop it. What would we say to Nessie? How do you turn a child's world upside down? Only, she wasn't a child. She was seventeen years old. Old enough to understand. Old enough to know the horrible truth. And once she knew, we could finally be happy again.

By telling her the truth, by making her happy again, there would be no more lies. There would be no more secrets. Everything would be different. Edward and I could be the parents we dreamed of being, the parents we were supposed to be. We were finally going to tell Renesmee who she really was, who we really were. We were finally going to tell Renesmee what she had been missing for the past eleven years.

We stayed in our room for a little while, holding each other in our misery. We planned out what we were going to say to her, every detail, every piece of the truth. And we planned out how to tell her that she would have to be immediately changed into one of us. We would have to explain her that it was going to be painful, though she had experienced enough emotional pain in her life that she probably wouldn't mind.

Edward gave me a long, passionate kiss before we both stood up to go to Nessie's room. This was it—we were finally going to tell her what she should have known her whole life. We were finally going to stop her pain—pain that she should have never had to undergo in the first place. Pain that we should have stopped last night, the second she opened up to us and convey how she felt.

I knocked on her door, but of course, she did not answer. We began calling her name, begging her to let us in. We told her that we were finally going to tell her the truth. But she still did not answer. Finally, Edward turned the door handle, pushing the door open to reveal the most horrible sight I had ever seen in my life.

Nessie was gone.


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**Chapter Sixteen**

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**Renesmee**

Nothing made sense to me at this moment.

I wondered why he was here next to me. I mean, after that horrible fiasco today, I was positive he would never want to be near me ever again. I didn't know what my father had said to him. I tried my hardest to tune my ears to the sound, but it was impossible. I had only been able to stand in a place that had been out of both of their sights, waiting until it was finally over.

Despite everything that had happened, he came to my house. And it was perfect timing; there was nothing I wanted to do more at the moment than fall into his strong arms once more, as he whispered in my ear and held me close.

He tapped on my window, a sympathetic look on his face rather than hurt or anger. I couldn't help but smile when I saw him. The guy who has been there for me all along. No matter how much denying there was, he was my absolute best friend. As I opened my window, I suddenly expected the compassion to be replaced by a livid hate. I had practically betrayed him, after all.

But for some unknown reason, just like I had wanted him to, he took my pathetic self into his arms. I apologized over and over till it started to sound like ancient tribal chant. He dismissed every single one of those apologies. Then he told me to grab my things. I obeyed him. I took his hand and climbed on his back. He began running at an undesirable pace. All I remember was the trees blurring past us. Then suddenly, we were at the airport, which had to have been a good ten miles away. I was in a state of awe—I didn't question, only allowed myself to be pulled along. The story of my life. Only this time, I didn't mind it so much.

Now we were together. Finally. He was holding my hand, giving me a reassuring smile every once in awhile, but refusing to enlighten me on what we were doing. No matter how many questioning looks I gave him, they were always answered with a shrug and one of those beautiful smiles.

Finally, as the plane took off, he leaned over to me. I felt my cheeks flush at the feeling of his breath on my ear.

"We're going to figure all of this out, Nessie," he said softly.

I looked up at him, giving him a weak smile. "We are?"

He furrowed his brow as his brown eyes sparkled with intensity. "Of course. You trust me, right?"

"I've always trusted you. You know that."

And then, he leaned over and pressed his lips softly to mine. The room seemed to spin. I stopped breathing. It was gentle, soft, absolutely perfect.

But he wasn't Jacob.

I kissed him back, although I really didn't want to.

I had ripped away from Jacob, although I really didn't want to.

Like Nick's kiss, irony never seemed to cease.


	18. Chapter Seventeen

**Chapter Seventeen**

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**Renesmee**

When we stepped off the plane I immediately turned my phone back on. My heart immediately sank into my stomach. 179 missed calls-I hadn't even realized that a cell phone could store so many missed calls until this moment.

12 missed calls: Uncle Emmett

10 missed calls: Aunt Rosalie

18 missed calls: Aunt Alice

13 missed calls: Uncle Jasper

13 missed calls: Grandpa

14 missed calls: Grandma

27 missed calls: Mom

38 missed calls: Daddy

These, of course, were all understandable. It was the last name in the long list that almost confused me almost as much as my entire life had thus far.

47 missed calls: Jake

I didn't understand why he had called me at all, let alone forty-seven times, the record of my distraught family members. Jacob should have hated me. _I_ hated me, and I wasn't the one who had been rejected after an amazing kiss. I wasn't the one who had been deserted to deal with a furious, over-protective father. I wasn't the one who had been betrayed.

Right on cue, rescuing me from my overpowering, self-loathing thoughts, Nick placed a frosty hand on my shoulder. "Nessie, I'm going into the gift shop for a minute. Do you want to come?" He gave me his perfect smile, his eyes sparkling with beauty, reminding me of my father's. I felt homesickness flood through me, a dreaded plague.

"I think I have some phone calls to make." I showed him my missed calls list, which immediately caused him to whistle at the size of it.

"Good luck with that," he teased.

I closed my eyes as he leaned in to kiss me a brief goodbye. As he made his godly walk toward the shop I immediately collapsed on one of the chairs outside of our terminal, as if I hadn't been sitting on a plane for the past six hours.

Looking down at my phone once more, I began to shake; what was I going to tell everyone? They were all furious with me, and of course, I could not blame them. They were probably thinking the worst after seven total hours of silence from their runaway daughter.

My father's voice came on first. He sounded desperate-and absolutely terrified. "Nessie, please come home. Please."

The next message was from Uncle Emmett. "Renesmee, your parents are worried sick. We're all worried sick. I promise I'll make sure you're not in trouble at all, just come home."

My mother was the next to speak. "Baby, you have to come home now...you have to come home...you have to come home..."

I hung up my phone, unable to listen to their pain and longer. Suddenly, my phone began to ring once again. As I looked down at the name 'Daddy,' on the phone's screen, I felt my stomach sink. I inhaled deeply and then answered, unprepared and too exhausted with jet lag to attempt to think of an excuse that wasn't going to hold out anyway. It was inevitable, no matter what Uncle Emmett said: I was in deep trouble. "Hi, Daddy," I said as pleasantly as possible, trying to detour his anger.

"Nessie," he growled, although underneath his angry voice was the utter sound of relief.

"Listen, I'm sorry if you're all worried about me. I promise you, I'm okay. I'm with Nick."

I winced at the sound of something being demolished in the background—my father was beyond angry.

"Okay, I know you're mad. But I'm safe, I promise."

"You need to come home. Right now."

"Well, that will be kind of difficult. I'm in Italy."

Angry silence. Angry, angry silence. I heard him relay the information to everyone else, followed by multiple gasps.

"I'm coming to get you," he finally said in a low, barely audible snarl.

"But, Daddy…" I whispered, tears coming to my eyes, knowing that he wasn't just making a threat-now that I had stupidly revealed where I was, he would be in Italy as fast as he could.

"I'm catching the next flight out."

Before I could respond to this, the call waiting on my phone went off. I took the phone from my ear to glance at the caller id. I felt my heart skip a beat—it was Jake.

"I have to do this, Dad. I _need_ to do this. Give me two days, and I promise I will catch the next flight home."

"Nessie," he pleaded, his voice wavering and unsteady, unlike I had ever heard it before.

I felt my heart break at this sound—he cared about me so much and all I was doing was hurting him. But I couldn't leave; I had come too far already.

"Daddy, I have to go. I love you," I said, then quickly switched lines before he could reply.

"Hello?" I snapped. I wasn't sure what to feel at the moment; I was extremely angry with Jacob, but at the same time I felt extremely guilty for what I had done to him. I waited a few seconds for a response. When I didn't hear anything I glanced at my phone—the battery had died. Maybe it was an act of the fates, maybe it was plain bad luck. Either way, I was not going to be talking to Jacob, and for this I was extremely grateful.

A small chill overtook me, and I turned around to see Nick heading toward me. "Nessie," he said, his voice cold and smooth, bells ringing in my ear long after the sound waves had ceased moving.

"Nick, what…" I began, but instantly stopped when he held out a small package.

"I have been meaning to give you this for awhile, Nessie. I just needed something to put it in," he whispered, placing the box into my hands.

I slowly opened the package, shaking with uninvited nerves. I gasped when I saw the box's treasure; a beautiful silver ring, sparkling under the florescent airport lights as if it was in the sunshine.

"A new ring for a new Nessie," he said softly through two perfectly parted, irresistible lips. "I bought it to replace your old one. Take it off, and I will put your new one on."

I nodded slowly and pulled the ring that my father had given me, the one that Nick had once told me to hold on to, off my shaking finger. He replaced it with his own ring, kissing it softly before letting go of my hand.

"Thank you," was all I could manage. I felt a sting of guilt as I placed my old ring in my pocket, as if it had never meant anything to me in the first place. I supposed I had done the same to my family when I left without warning, in search of my selfish desires. I had placed them to the side in order to replace them with something new, something that was seemingly better.

Nick moved closer to me, pressing his lips to my cheek in a respectful manner. "You're welcome," he whispered.

I closed my eyes, inhaling this scene, a scene from a fairytale that would be only in the dreams of a normal seventeen-year-old. I felt Nick pull me closer to him; I felt his icy breath on my lips. Then Nick exhaled those three little words into my mouth, as if doing so would guarantee them to become entrapped and eventually expelled in the same manner. I found myself repeating them, adding the respective "too," which instantly caused them to become more desirable, yet more able to cause pain. And even though I knew it was the lie of all lies, I did not take it back. This was a love without constituents. This was a love without lies. This was a love that felt as wrong as it did right.


	19. Chapter Eighteen

**Chapter Eighteen**

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**Renesmee**

Magnificent—there was no other word to describe Italy. Even _that_ didn't come anywhere near describing the gorgeous antiquated structures of the buildings that surrounded the citizens, as if they were people as well.

I listened closely to the hundreds of different conversations, trying to remember the Italian my father had taught me. Although I was good at the language, after a month I wanted to postpone the lessons-my argument was that I wasn't going to Italy anytime soon to be able to put all of that hard work to use. I supposed the joke was on me now.

"Where are we staying?" I asked Nick, exhausted after our full day of sight-seeing that followed our plane ride.

"Well, I have family here, but I'm not exactly sure where they are. I'm going to call around tomorrow. Do you mind staying in a hotel tonight?"

I stopped walking and shifted uncomfortably. "Well, I…I…don't have very much money left."

Nick smiled as he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me closer. "I can pay, Ness. I can even buy us two separate rooms, if you want."

I felt myself blushing, embarrassed that I was going to have to take the offer. "I think my father would appreciate that."

He planted a kiss on my forehead, and then took my hand, pulling me back into the crowd of people that were walking the streets. I felt homesickness settle upon me as I thought about how I wasn't going to be sleeping in my bed tonight. I was going to be staying in a strange hotel, in a strange country.

I knew that no matter how hard I tried, I wouldn't be able to truly enjoy myself—Jacob was continuously at the front of my mind every second of the day. Everything reminded me of him—the buildings, strong and tall like the side of him that was clear to everyone who gazed upon him. The people, lovely and romantic like the side of him that only I knew. I heard his name in conversations that weren't even in my language. I saw his face in the clouds that graced the blue skies. The sounds of the fight we had had continuously echoed through my mind—the smashing of the table, the snarling of hot, angry words, words that I was sure we both regretted.

I glanced down at one of my shopping bags to make sure the charger I had purchased was still there. I wasn't sure what time it was back home, but when we were settled into our hotel rooms, I was going to call Jacob and apologize however many times it took to make certain that he actually believed me. And I was going to tell him that I loved him, and I would repeat it until he said it back to me. I knew it seemed as if I was simply being a foolish, love-struck teenager. But I knew deep down in my heart that this was different. This was the first thing I had ever felt was right in my life. I loved Jacob Black—and if I had to go home and live in a life of lies for the rest of my life, I was willing.

"Are you thinking about me?" Nick asked, his voice smooth and beautiful, an angelic sound. However, no sound would be as angelic as the Jake's rough voice, a beautiful sound even to ears that had listened to it all day long.

"Yes," I answered quietly. The lie seemed to hang in the air, as if he knew what it really was. And I truly did not care—at least if there was heartache at the very beginning, it would not mold into a mountain, unable to be stopped with an honest and pure heart.

"There's our hotel, right around the corner," he said, filling in the silence. I couldn't help but beam when I saw the spender of where we would be staying. Sure, it wasn't home, but it was a magnificent substitute. As I lay in my bed that night, I recalled the events of this current episode of consciousness—throughout the day I had fought with Jacob, been passionately kissed by Jacob, had witnessed my father attack Nick, and had been swept away by Nick in a classic, romantic fashion to a foreign country.

I glanced over at my phone, which had begun to charge. I recalled what Nick had told me before I had gone into my room. I had told him my plan of returning Jacob's call to make sure that everything was okay between us.

"Nessie," he had responded with sigh, taking my hands into his. "Do you really want the purpose of this trip to be fulfilled?"

"Of course," I had responded, confused.

"Well, then you must not call him. Or anyone in your family for that matter. I'm asking this of you for your own good, Nessie. I know that if you speak to them at all, whether on the phone or through a text message, you will go running back home. You can't argue with me—you always want to please the people you love and that's something I admire about you. However, this time, you cannot please them. You have to do what's right for you for once in your life. And I'm sorry to say that involves breaking contact with them for a few days. You can send them a text message every once in awhile to let them know you're safe, but that is as far as I would go. I wouldn't answer the phone or read any of their responded messages. You're on your own now, and your mature enough to handle all of this on your own.

As these words had poured from his mouth, I couldn't do anything but agree—he was correct, after all. I had come so far already. But I was a homesick girl who had never been away from her family before—and at this point, if any of them told me to come home, I would listen. I would drop everything and take the next flight home, running the risk of my parents not fulfilling their promise of telling me what I came all the way to Italy to find out. And then where would I be? Well, I would be with Jake, something I had always wanted, but would have gotten regardless if I had stayed for a few more days or had gone home before my mission was complete.

Even though I was planning on keeping this promise to Nick, I kept my phone on the entire night while it charged. Sure, I wasn't going to speak with them. But it was nice to know that every time I heard that ringer, it meant someone in the world truly cared about me.

As I drifted to sleep, I dreamed of hidden dungeons and secret clues, all leading me to the memories of my past.


	20. Chapter Nineteen

**Chapter Nineteen**

‡

**Renesmee**

I awoke to knock at my door. "It's me," Nick said from outside in the hallway. I jumped out of bed to open the door, beaming when I saw him on the other side. He stamped me with a quick kiss, and then held his hands around my waist, staring deep into my eyes. After a few seconds, when he could truly see into my soul, his smile faded, just as I knew it would.

"You've been thinking about him all night, haven't you?" he asked softly, not turning away.

Another lie formed on my tongue, ready to escape, but halting when he spoke once more. "I'll make you forget about him," he whispered in my ear. "Don't you know that I love you more?"

I nodded, simply to appease him, although I knew he could probably see right through me.

"Can you be ready in an hour?" he asked.

I gave him a curious look, causing him to smile mischievously. "Sure, but where are we going?"

"I spoke with my uncle last night, so I figured we could go to visit him. I believe you'll find it quite intriguing."

"But, Nick, how does your uncle connect to me? How does…"

He put a finger to my lips, stopping the questions before they poured out of me at an unstoppable pace.

"Everything will make sense, I promise." He kissed me softly, holding my chin in the tips of his fingers as he stared at me with pure promise in his eyes. "Now, get ready to leave. I'll come back to your room in an hour."

I nodded, still unsure how meeting his uncle was going to be conducive to my mission. However, I trusted Nick and was willing to go where ever he took me. After showering and getting dressed, I laid on the bed for a minute, waiting for Nick to come back. The ring of my phone startled me—it was my father. Thinking back to the decision I had made last night, I silenced the call, and sent him a text message instead.

I'm safe. I can't talk now. Love you.

As painful as it was, I ignored his responses; although I hadn't read any of them, for fear that they would make me wish to call him, I knew beyond a doubt that they consisted of more pleading for me to return home. Another knock at my door caused me to push my father and the rest of my family to the back of my mind. I practically skipped out the door into Nick's arms, holding his hand as we went down the hallway, as blissful and carefree as children.

"He lives right down the street," Nick noted, raising my hand to his lips as we walked into the flowing crowd.

"Okay," I answered shyly, blushing at the romanticism of the act.

We maneuvered through the thick mass of people, holding hands to avoid separation. Every once in a while, he would look down and give me as reassuring smile, as if he knew how terrified I was. Finally, we reached our destination, in the form of one of the many old buildings that appear as if they do not serve any current purpose except as pieces of artwork scattered about the city.

"Your uncle lives here?" I asked, gazing at the magnificent structure.

"Yes," he answered as he pulled open the door, motioning in a gentleman fashion for me to go ahead of him. The cold of the building hit me like an arctic wind—I shivered, wishing I could seek Nick's warmth but knowing it was not there to give. "Yes, along with some other people. They sort of have their own group."

"What kind of a group?"

His only response was a small smile, not as lovely as his smiles always were. In the candle light that filled the hallway, Nick looked different. In this light, secrets filled his eyes, even more than usual. His face was proud and excited, as if this was where he truly belonged, as if he was finally where he had wanted to be his entire life. This made no sense to me—he had lived in Alaska before he moved to Washington. He hadn't even known where he uncle resided when we arrived in the city. As far as I knew, he had no connection to this city, to this building, nothing that would bring him the pleasure and satisfaction I was now witnessing.

With all of these thoughts going on in my head, I barely noticed the man standing at the top of the staircase at the end of the hallway. I squinted, only seeing his outline in the dim lights.

"Why hello," he greeted, his voice was low and enchanting, instantly calming me at the sound of it echoing off the beautiful brick walls.

"Uncle Aro," Nick replied, walking forward to embrace him with a handshake. "Uncle, this is Renesemee."

I swallowed, slowly striding toward him. As my eyes became clearer, I noticed his beautiful eyes—the exact same color as Nick's. He too had pale skin, which made him look eerie in the candlelit hallway. The black cloak he was wearing flowed to the ground and covered the top of his head with a dark hood—it was as if it was something out of a horror movie. Every instinct inside me told me to run, while my heart told me to continue approaching him. I knew my heart had won the battle when I found myself unable to stop myself from moving. I didn't question it—I only mustered up all of the courage I could and continued moving toward the staircase.

With each step came a pang of fear—there was something about this situation that seemed familiar. There was something about this man's voice and appearance that brought back the outline of memories—not the entire remembrance, but enough to know that something had occurred. When I neared him, he extended his hand, as did I.

Strangely, the second we made contact with each other, a memory suddenly flowed forth, filling my mind so that I could no longer contemplate what was happening in front of me. In it was my entire family, standing by this man, whom one minute ago I believed I had never met before. But the memory was through my eyes—there was no denying that we had indeed seen each other once, a long time ago. The second we dropped our hands, the memory disappeared, once again joining my many other lost recollections.

"It is wonderful to have you here, my dear," he said, his voice warm and welcoming. "Welcome to Volterra."

"Thank you," I replied sweetly, pushing my fear aside. If my family had stood in his company, he must be a friend. And a friend of my family's was a friend of mine—and for that reason I had nothing to be afraid of. This was the man who was going to answer the questions. The only thing I had to be afraid of now was hearing the truth.

Suddenly, my cell phone began ringing. Embarrassment filled my cheeks at the sound of it echoing off the aged walls, completely shattering the romantic feel of the building.

"I'm sorry," I said, silencing another one of my father's attempts to contact me.

"No need to be sorry, young one. May I ask who it was?"

"My father. I sort of left in a rush—and he's not very pleased with my being in a foreign country without him."

"Ah, that is understandable. I do not have children of my own, but I assume that I would be just as worried as he." He paused as a kind smile filled face. "Edward and I were very good friends when I resided in the United States. You're mother and I as well. When this is all over, I must fly back with the two of you to visit them. It simply has been too long."

"I'm sure my parents would love that." And maybe, I thought, they would not be as angry if I brought home a long-lost friend of theirs—for all the trouble I was going to be in when I got home, I would take any chance of redemption I could get.

"Now, let me introduce you to the other residents of this house. Caius! Please come downstairs, and bring the others. Our guests have arrived."

"Welcome, young ones," a man greeted as he glided down the stairs, his own black cloak making it appear as if he wasn't touching the steps at all. Of course, he also had moon-kissed skin and beautiful eyes. I found my remaining fear slowly dwindling due to all of the entrancing voices that echoed off the walls.

"Renesmee, Nicholas, this is Caius, my dearest friend," Aro said with pride, emphasizing the last part with a true friend's endearment.

"Hello," Nick and I replied at the same time, and Caius nodded in acknowledgment.

Following him were five other people—three men and a small boy and girl, both a little younger than me. They were all dressed exactly the same as their fellow residents and had the clone facial features that had now become a prevalent characteristic of my life.

"This is Marcus, Demitri, Matthew, Alec, and his sister Jane," Aro said, pointing to them respectively.

Although none of their welcomes were warm, the excitement that they gave to me was compensation. I was not sure who these people were or what purpose my being here served, but I did know that the people who stood before me were the key to everything.

"Come, let me show you to your rooms," Aro said warmly, gesturing for us to follow him. The upstairs was no different than the downstairs—old paintings splattered the walls, with intricate window and brick designs putting even the most elaborate pieces to shame. I glanced out the window at the bustling city, which gave me reassurance that there was still a normal, modern-day world outside of these old walls.

Before leaving us to the two conjoining rooms he had shown us, Aro placed a hand on Nick's shoulder, smiling while meeting each of our eyes. "If there is anything you need, my dear children, please do not hesitate to ask."

"Thank you, Uncle. You have been most kind," Nick replied gratefully.

"Yes, thank you," I said as well, hoping that he would not be leaving us just yet—I had wished that whatever I was to expect to happen on this trip would at least begin to occur as soon as I arrived. I wasn't sure if it would be in the form of a clue or a full-blown conversation, but I wasn't going to be the patient, perfect girl I had always been at home. If I wanted answers, I was going to have to go after them with assertiveness that matched my desire to obtain them.

I took a deep breath, and sticking with my new personality, I took charge. "Sir, if you don't mind my asking, why am I here? Is there something you are going to reveal to me? Something that I need to know?"

"My dear, there is much for you to know. But I'm not sure if it is right for me to just come out in say it, especially in the relaxed setting that we are in at the current moment. The information I have to reveal to you is of dire importance, you see."

"Oh," I said, disappointed. I felt Nick's hand at the small of my back, as if he was gently reminding me that I was going to find out in due time.

His eyes suddenly began to twinkle like diamonds in the sunlight. "But, if it would please you, I would love to speak with you right after you settle in. How about you two meet me in the dining hall in twenty minutes?"

My eyes lit up with a childish excitement at the sound of this promise. Taking this as an affirmative answer, Aro smiled in a grandfatherly manner before gliding back down the stairs.

"Twenty minutes," I breathed, unable to believe in the present reality I was immersed in.

"Twenty minutes," Nick repeated, placing his hands around my waist in a manner that would make my father cringe. He gently pressed his lips to mine—and this time, I kissed him back. I wrapped my arms around his hand and pressed my body to his, silently letting him know how much I appreciated everything he had done for me over the past twenty-four hours. I felt a smile on his lips as his breathing increased. With a tiny final kiss he pulled away, pressing his forehead to mine.

"You, Renesmee Cullen, are about to know everything. I know what pain you've gone through. And I am so glad I am able to put an end to that pain."

I could feel my eyes widen with curiosity at the sound of yet another affirmation that Nick knew more than I could possible imagine. "But how? How did you know?"

"You'll find out everything in due time. For now, spend the next twenty minutes remembering every question you've ever had, everything you've ever been the least unsure about. Because, my dear, you are about to get them all answered."

With small tears rolling down my cheeks, I wrapped my arms around him in a tight hug-I pretended that he was my father, the person who I wished was before me, sincerely wanting to tell me the truth.

"Now, Nessie, where to begin…" Aro started, folding his hands in front of him. We now sat at the beautiful dining table in the center of the house.

"I suppose simply start from the beginning, Uncle," Nick suggested, squeezing my hand under the table to give me reassurance.

"Nessie, as I'm sure you have noticed, we are different from other people you have met. You're family is different as well. What are some characteristics you've noticed?"

"Well," I began, slowly but boldly. "You all have pale skin. And amazing eyes that entrance you the moment you look into them. And you're skin is ice cold. And you seem to never age. And you don't sleep. And you don't eat."

He smiled with amusement at this long list I had just presented him. "Have you come to any conclusion on what these characteristics might symbolize?"

I shook my head—as hard as I have tried over the years, I could never fathom even a guess as to what it all might mean. This saddened me; with all of the intelligence I had gathered throughout my life, I could not even put it to use it when it really mattered.

"Nessie, you're family, Nick, Caius, the rest of the people you met today, and myself are vampires."

He hadn't even paused before speaking the word—that evil, evil word. Vampires. Bloodthirsty, vicious vampires. I felt sick to my stomach—how many people had my family killed, simply to nourish themselves?

"Now, let me make one thing clear: the vampires in this household are vegetarians, meaning we do not eat people. I'm sorry to tell you this, but your family does not believe in this way of life. They choose to follow the more obvious course of our kind."

The words hung in the air, as they always did when there was something truly awful that was revealed. I closed my eyes, trying to contemplate what I had just discovered—my family, the people who raised me, had been feeding off of people my entire life, without my knowing. I couldn't understand how my father, who tucked me into bed every night, could be so evil. My grandfather, who as a doctor took a vow to heal, was actually destroying. And they had another choice—they could have chosen to go vegetarian, just as their counterparts. But they didn't. And simply having that choice made a world of a difference in my eyes.

"So what does that make me? Am I am vampire as well? But I've never drunk…" I stopped, choking on the hideous word. "…blood, so how could I be?"

"You are what we call a half-breed, my dear. See, vampires are frozen in time—that is why we do not age. I myself am around five hundred years old and obviously do not appear so. However, when your mother was pregnant with you, she had been human."

"So at the time, my father was a..." I stopped once more, trying to process this impossible pieces of information.

"Vampire," Aro finished for me. "Edward has been a vampire since the beginning of the 1900's."

"The 1900's," I whispered with shock, more of a statement than a question.

"Yes, my dear. I know this is hard to take in. You are doing so well."

"So my mother was human when she was pregnant with me. And my father…well, he wasn't. Which makes me half-human, half-vampire. And all of my aunts and uncles, and my grandparents, are all…"

"Are vampires as well. Although, they are not truly blood related to you. Most of them were born in the 19th century, with the exception of Carlisle, who was born almost three hundred years ago."

I swallowed this, preparing myself for more. "But Jacob's not. He's warm. And tan. And he sleeps and eats a lot."

"Jacob is a werewolf. The sworn enemy of vampires."

I recalled what I knew about werewolves-howling, moons, changing without consent. "Enemy?" I asked. "But how…"

"When you were young, a group of evil vampires tried to overtake your family. But they held strong, with Jacob and his pack at their side."

I thought back to all of Jacob's brothers—his pack. None of them lived together because they weren't true family; they were only family through the pack.

"A werewolf," I repeated, dazed from all of the information I had just received. "But why did they keep all of this from me? Why couldn't they have simply told me?"

His face instantly grew solemn at this question. "That is a question I cannot answer, my dear. I have tried figuring it out, but frankly, I do not think there was a reason. Maybe they simply did not want you to realize the dark secret they were hiding—that unlike you, they nourish themselves through humans. I suppose that losing your memory in that car crash was exactly what they needed; they could hide the truth from you, so that you would never realize what they truly were."

"I can't believe…" I cut off, stifling a sob. "I can't believe they lied to me. I can't believe they used my accident for their own sick gains. I can't believe they willingly eat people."

Nick put a hand around my waist and pressed his lips lovingly to the side of my head. "I'm so sorry you had to find out this way, Nessie," he said softly. "I wish more than anything your parents would have told you. I just couldn't bear to see you hurting this much; I had to intervene."

I looked at him, another question on the tip of my tongue. "But why were you in Washington in the first place?"

Aro spoke first, his voice calm as he answered yet another question for me. "You see, Nessie, we are the law enforcement of the vampire world. And I send Nick, along with the others you have met today, to different places where vampires reside, just to check up on them and make sure that they are not causing problems that will reveal themselves to the humans that reside around them."

I turned to Nick. "So why did my father attack you, that night outside of my house?"

He closed his eyes, as if the recollection of the event was painful. "He knew I was planning on telling you the truth. I had talked to him before and warned him to tell you what was happening, but he wouldn't listen. So I told him that I was going to tell you myself. When I came to your house that night, he must have smelled me. He warned me not to come near you again, but I wouldn't listen. I care about you too much, Nessie. That's when I knew that I had to take you to my uncle, so that he could tell you the truth and I would be certain you listened—where we wouldn't be prevented by your father."

Suddenly, I heard my name being shouted, a scream from the bottom of the soul. The door to the room flew open, and when turned to look behind me, my heart stopped—standing in the doorway was Jacob Black.

"Nessie!" he yelled, running toward me. He threw his arms around me, hugging me tightly.

"Get off of me!" I screamed, fighting against him. When he finally let go, I glared at him, making certain my angry eyes were boring through him. "What are you doing here?" I snapped with furry, enunciating every raging word.

"Nessie, listen to me. Whatever they're telling you are lies! Don't believe them!"

"Oh, so it's a lie that my parents are vampires? And it's a lie that you're a werewolf? And it's a lie that you've been keeping this from me for eleven years?"

He instantly became silent at the sound of these accusations.

"Jake, I suggest you go back home. I'm not ready to leave yet."

"Nessie, you've got to listen to me. You've…" He suddenly screamed in agony, instantly falling to the floor. I stared in horror at this, unsure of what was happening. Finally, he spoke. "Tell. Her. To. Stop." He said each word sharply, his teeth clenched in pure pain.

"What's happening to him? Please, stop this!" I screamed to Aro, who did not seem fazed by this horrible sight.

"That's enough," he commanded right as that young girl, Jane, walked into the room.

"Are you sure, Aro? I would love to give him a few minutes more." Although light and child-like, her voice was cruel. Filled with fury. Evil.

Jane turned to me, her facial feature apologetic. "I'm very sorry about that, Renesmee," she chirped merrily. "I knew he was going to grab you, drag you back home. I didn't want him to do that."

I looked down at Jacob, who was still lying, tormented, on the floor. "What did you do to him?" I asked quietly, although I did not move to comfort him. He didn't deserve comforting.

"It's my power. I can make people believe they are experiencing pain, when in reality I am not even touching them."

"Do all vampires have powers?"

"Not all," Aro answered, shaking his head. "But many of the ones you know. For example, both of your parents have powers."

"They do?"

"Yes. You're mother is a shield—that means that other powers do not affect her—therefore Jane would not be able to simulate pain on your mother."

For an instant, I thought I saw fury wash over Jane's face-but a second later, she was wearing a pleasant smile. I figured I had imagined it and quickly pushed it to the back of my mind as I focused on the much more important matters at hand.

"And what's my father's power?" I asked curiously, somewhat dreading the answer.

Aro suddenly frowned in hesitation. "Well," he finally began. "He can read minds, Nessie."

I suddenly saw the world going black as I tumbled to the ground, hearing the sound of my own head hit the cold floor below me.


	21. Chapter Twenty

**Chapter Twenty**

‡

**Renesmee**

"Nessie? Nessie. Nessie! Wake up, Nessie!"

His hands were warm on my face, causing me to smile. I was in Jake's arms once more at his house. He was making breakfast—our favorite: eggs, bacon, and cheese, all between two slices of golden-brown, buttered toast. He was rubbing my back, telling me to wake up. When I opened my eyes, I would see his beautiful, perfect, smiling face, the fact that I loved seeing first thing in the morning. He was with me and we were home, and that was all that mattered.

When I opened my eyes, I almost let out a shriek. We were not home. We were still in Italy. I was lying in my bed, still at the old house. And it wasn't Jacob who was standing over me—it was Nick with a heating pad in his hands.

"Oh, thank God you're alright," he whispered, breathing a sigh of relief. He leaned forward and kissed me, holding an extra second longer than usual.

"What happened?" I asked, sleepiness and confusion ringing in my groggily voice.

"You fainted, Nessie. You hit your head pretty hard."

I reached my hand underneath my hair, wincing in pain the second I felt the large cut. As I withdrew my hand, I looked down at the blood on my fingertips. I glanced at Nick, and quickly stuffed my hand under my blanket.

He chuckled at this. "Don't worry. I utterly despise human blood. And I've eaten already today regardless."

I smiled, embarrassed that I would ever think that Nick would hurt me. Nick, after all, was the one who had saved me—saved me from the horrible world of lies I had been entrapped in.

"Where's Jacob?" I asked, looking around the room even though I knew Nick and I were the only two here.

Nick's features saddened as he took my hand in a consoling manner. "He went home, Nessie. He told me to tell you goodbye. He didn't want to wait until you woke up."

"He…he left?" It wasn't possible. Jake never left me-I had always left him. Tears swelled my eyes as I contemplated this—he didn't wait for me to awaken. He make one last attempt pursued me to go home with him. He came all this way, and he simply gave up on me. It was at that moment I knew the dooming truth. His leaving was proof; I had lost Jacob forever.

"I'm sorry, Nessie." Nick gently wrapped his arms around me, comforting me in a way that was ironic—the only person who could truly comfort me in this situation was the person who I was mourning the loss of.

"Can you help me?" I asked him, reaching out a hand. He helped me out of bed with care, as if I was extremely fragile. And I supposed I was—I had been broken so many times. And at the moment, I felt as if I would never be put back together.

"Would you like to get out of the house? Maybe go to a little restaurant I know of down the street?"

Just as he was finished, my stomach let out a low growl. Taking that as an affirmation, Nick took my hand, leading me outside where the sky was once again gray and cloudy. "The one time I'm in Italy," I complained, "and I haven't seen one bit of sun."

Nick chuckled. "It's a good thing—if it was sunny, I wouldn't be able to go outside." At my confused look, Nick elucidated. "Did you ever notice that your parents refuse to go outside in the sunlight?"

I thought back to the rare days of glory in Washington, when the sun would shine bright and beautiful. Jacob had taken me to school those days. I remembered last summer, when I had asked my mother if we could go to the beach for a vacation—her eyes had widened, as if my innocent suggestion had instead been to attempt the sport of bungee jumping.

"What happens to you in the sunlight?" I asked, once again afraid of the answer.

Nick laughed again, stopping in the middle of the sidewalk to give me a small kiss of adoration. "We just sparkle."

"You _just_ sparkle?"

We resumed walking as he began his answer. "Yes. It's not that big of a deal—it's just that we don't want to stand out in the crowd. If you saw someone walking down the street with skin sparkling like diamonds, you would think it was a little peculiar."

After a few minutes of silent walking, the memory of what had happened right before I passed out came flooding back to me. I hesitated, unsure if I should ask Nick about it, for fear he would confirm that what I remembered what true. But I had to know—and I didn't want to find out from my father, without having time to prepare. "Nick, was what Aro said true? Can my father really read minds?"

The atmosphere grew heavy again, even in the midst of the laughter and merriment that filed the people of Italy. "Yes, he can," he responded.

The thought sickened me. All this time I had thought just as every other normal person would have—that I was the only one who could know my thoughts unless I decided to express them aloud. And now to find out that my own father was reading my mind—the mind of his teenage daughter. What had I thought about my entire life? Were there times when I was fantasizing, just like every other teenage girl on the planet, a make out scene with my crush, who just so happened to be Jake? Were there times he was listening when I thought about my deepest darkest secrets, the ones you would never tell anyone, even your best friend? It was as if he had read my diary but ten times worse—at least I didn't write every thought that had ever entered my mind onto the pages of my diary.

"Your mother and father are not the only ones of your family with powers. Your aunt, the small one with the dark hair…"

"Alice." A small smile graced my face as I pictured her beaming, eyes alit with pure joy.

"Yeah, Alice. She can see the future. And her husband, he can expel his emotions."

More memories of Uncle Jasper entering the room, causing my mood to instantly change, even to their most opposite counterpart. Memories of Aunt Alice winning the small bets we would often make, although she would never accept her winnings of our wager of candy. 'Aunt Alice, you're such a good guesser,' I would tell her. Now I knew that she wasn't—she had known the outcome. Did she know what was happening to me at this very moment? Could she and my father use their powers to find me, to drag me back to a place that was now completely foreign?

"And you…"

I gasped, stopping once again in the middle of the sidewalk. "Me?"

He nodded. "You can place your hand on someone and let them see exactly what you're thinking."

"That's all?"

"It's a better power than you think, Nessie. For anyone else to have their perspective understood, they must research and debate countless hours, just to have someone disregard their opinions. But you, Renesmee, you have the power to make people view life in a different way, a perspective that they could deny because they would be witnessing it for themselves."

"Oh," I stated, still not convinced. There was nothing special about a power such as that. I could come up with a dozen reasons why the powers that my family held could be vital. And of course, even in the midst of a gene pool of amazing powers such as mind reading and being a shield, I would receive the useless one.

"And what about you?" I asked. "Do you have a special power?"

He ran his fingers through his dark brown hair, giving me a small smile. "Yeah," he admitted with a sigh.

"And it would be...?"

He turned to me hesitantly, obviously uncomfortable with the situation. "Nessie, do you remember something...strange happening to you the night you asked your parents and Jacob all of those questions?"

Of course, his words made sense the second he told them to me-the voice. _He_ had been that voice, telling me what to do, what to say. Prompting me to seek the answers to the questions that had built up inside me. I had known it had a familiar sense to it, but it had not been his exact voice-which was the reason why I had not recognized it at first.

I felt his hand grasp mine, and I turned to look at him with uncertain eyes. I was not sure how I felt about this-on the one hand, he had helped me a great deal. On the other hand, it appeared as if yet again someone had been trespassing inside my own mind.

As if on cue, Nick answered my question. "I wasn't reading your mind, if that's what you are thinking." To me, his answering of this unasked question was a little ironic-by doing so, it appeared as if he _had_ been reading my mind. However, I trusted him-what reason was there for Nick to lie to me?

Even though I believed him on the subject of not reading my mind, I still did not know the reason he had been able to tell me what to say next without having been present at the time. I knew the answer to _that_ question could be worse than him being a mind-reader. "Then how did you know what to ask me?" I questioned with a sharp tone.

"I...well...installed a listening device outside of your house. Just for the night." He added the last part quickly, after seeing the horrified expression on my face.

"You see," he continued. "I needed to be there in order to be able to tell you what to say. I was going to sit outside your house-vampires have impeccable hearing, in case you didn't know-but I knew your parents would smell my engulfing scent-we also have an amazing sense of smell. So I had to install a listening device outside in your bushes.

I hadn't even been sure if you would comply-if you refused to listen to me, then I was simply going to quit. However, you did what I said, even though in the end it hadn't worked. That's when I decided to take you to Italy-Nessie, I couldn't stand the thought of you living in that world of lies. I had to put an end to it, and I was willing to do whatever it took to make that happen..." His eyes quickly glanced at the city around us, so many miles away from my home. "...obviously."

But that had only been half of the question. "Then who was the second voice?"

"The second voice?" he asked in a genuine surprised manner.

"Yeah. There were two voices. Yours, the one telling me to ask the questions, and another...one that told me not two."

Angry washed over his face at the revealing of this information. "I don't know who else has my power, but they shouldn't have been using it to work against me. I was trying to help you-they could have ruined everything."

Although I smiled in agreement, I knew it had not been another vampire with the same power as Nick. It had been me-or rather, my subconscious. The second voice had been my true desire, how I did not really want to disrupt my picture-perfect family.

I suppose I had been wrong then. But what made me think I was right now?

"So, are we okay?" Nick asked.

I squeezed his hand in response, unable to speak as a million thoughts raced through me head.

He then interrupted my thoughts once more by leaning over to gave me a small kiss on my cheek as we were walking, an action that caused me to blush slightly. Who would have guessed that the boy I had met in the cafeteria at school would end up being the person who loved me the best in the entire world? I knew deep down, despite my guilt for leaving my home, that this was where I belonged-right here, in this city, with Nick. He had made my world as blissful as it had been before we moved to Washington-before the lie and secrets. He had been the one to prove that he truly loved me-and it would take a lot of actions on the part of my family for them to prove the same.

We reached the restaurant, which was a tiny Italian café called "Tua Ninna Nanna," a word that I recognized right away to mean "Your Lullaby." Tears instantly burned my eyes as I thought of my father. The lullaby he used to sing for my formed at the back of my throat, and suddenly I heard myself expelling it, humming its familiar tune. Even when Nick gave me a curious look, I continued its melody, pausing exactly where my father used to pause to kiss my forehead or to wipe a tear off my cheek. I wished more than anything for him to be here, for my mother as well. Now that everything was known, I simply wanted to run into their arms. I wanted to tell them that I accepted them, regardless of who they were or what they had done.

"What's that song?" Nick asked, interrupting my thoughts.

I stopped, closing my eyes to keep the tune with me even while I was not singing it. "It's a lullaby my father sings to me."

"Oh. You must be missing him by now."

I nodded just as a single tear rolled down my cheek. I closed my eyes, embarrassed to be crying as we were waiting in line to be seated. However, I could not stop. My body began shaking with grief and homesickness. I felt an icy hand enter mine, gently leading me outside where the cool wind dried my tears.

"I have somewhere we can go," he whispered into my ear. He led me down the street, weaving through the crowd of people, some of whom complained of a chill just as we passed. After walking out of the bustling town to a more remote area, we arrived at the edge of a large forest.

"This is Blood Forrest, rightly named so. My uncle and his companions go here to hunt-however, I find sitting among the trees to be quite a catharsis. I love being out with nature. It's..." He suddenly stopped.

"What is it?" I asked, my voice cracking with concern.

As he turned he head toward me, I almost jumped at the sight of his dark, intense eyes, an expression I had never witnessed on him before. "There's trouble."

"What do you mean?"

"Come," he ordered sharply, pulling my hand with force. Surprised by this out of character behavior, I allowed myself to be pulled along. We remained in complete silence for about a half a mile, until I saw exactly what he had been referring to. Standing in the middle of the forest, out of place among the dancing trees, were Aro and the rest of the residents of the old house. They were in their cloaks, as dark as ever. And opposite them was one of the best yet worst sights I had ever seen in my life.

My family.


	22. Chapter Twenty one

**Chapter Twenty-One**

‡

**Renesmee**

Uncle Emmett, Aunt Rosalie, Uncle Jasper, and Aunt Alice were all crouched in an attacking position. My mother and grandmother were standing tall and threatening. My father and grandfather were in front of them, ready to strike.

Ready to kill.

"No!" I yelled, instantly stopping them as each side took a deadly step forward.

"Nessie!" my mother screamed and even from a distance I could see the utter relief plastered upon her face.

Suddenly, I felt enormous pain in my left side. I was being carried—and now I was on one distinct side of the brawl. But it wasn't the side of my family-I was enclosed in a circle of thick black cloaks. Confusion filled me when I realized that the person who was carrying me was Nick.

"Nick, what are you doing? Put me down!" I screamed, banging my arm against his shoulder. I found myself on the ground, instantly hearing the sickening sound of a bone crunching. Pain shot through my wrist, and I could barely see through my tear-filled eyes.

I heard my father's thunderous voice, snarling just as he had that night when he attacked Nick. "Let her go!" he screamed.

"Patience, my young friend." Aro's voice, as smooth and calm as always. Except there was something more to it—something that terrified me beyond belief. The intense pain in my wrist dazed me. I became dizzy, disoriented. I was in terrible danger—and I was now cut off from the only people who could save me. I began crawling my way out of the circle of evil that surrounded me, digging my hands into the thick mud. Pain shot through my ribs—someone was kicking me, pulling me backwards. And they were winning, for they were stronger. They were vampires. And I had fallen for their evil plan.

"Nessie, I suggest you stay where you are, unless you want us to break every bone in that pretty little body of yours." Nick's voice. An evil snarl, the complete opposite of the angelic, endearing voice that had told me to pack my things. That had told me that he loved me. That had told me he would never hurt me—ever. I had fallen for every single one of his disgusting lies. It had all been a con—and he had been the bait.

"What do you want with her?" My grandfather's voice. Unsure. Panicked. Terrified.

"Patience, Carlisle. First, let me take this time to congratulate every single person here. Twelve years, we've been working on this plan. Waiting patiently for everything to time out. Sure, we hit some bumps in the road along the way—such as when you guys decided to move back to Washington. We had to completely rework our entire scheme after _that_ decision. But everything had worked out perfectly in the end-as evidence to now.

Thankfully, your little fortune teller over there cannot see any visions with half-breeds in it—or else, none of this would have been possible. You see, that's the pure genius of this plan—I had to work around the mind reader and the crystal ball, or else, it would have been foiled from the very beginning."

I felt heat rise in my throat, and I coughed, watching with repulsion as the color red spilled onto the ground in front of me. Terror filled me at this sight—I was surrounded by a circle of blood-thirsty vampires who most-likely lied about their vegetarian practices. The cut on the back of my head had reopened and now I was coughing up blood—I was as good as dead. However, to my surprise they ignored me and kept their focus on the task at hand—destroying my precious family.

"You can have anything you want. Just let her go." My father's pleading voice again. At the sound of it, I used all of my strength to lift up my head, just so I could see his face. However, I was being blocked by the thick, black cloaks, a representation of evil incarnate.

"Don't jump ahead, Edward. We are getting to that part. After all, we did not go through the unpleasing trouble of luring your pathetic little daughter to us without having something that we wanted in return in mind. Now, where were we? Oh yes, the plan. You see, Cullen family, after we had come seeking to destroy your precious little daughter, the time when you gathered all the covens you could to join against us, we began contemplating how powerful you truly were. You understand, we could not have a small, insignificant little family threatening our immaculate power. So we formulated a scheme-sending in the handsome stranger, hypnotizing him so he could be near blood-filled Renesmee without the desire to consume her, and then ultimately luring her to Italy where you, of course, would run around the world twice simply to rescue her. I have to say, it was a brilliant plan-and the key to it all was this little girl."

I felt the air surrounding me become lighter, and I lifted my head up to see once more. Standing only ten feet away was my family. I watched as Uncle Emmett grabbed my father's arm, restraining him from doing what the wild look in his eyes told me that he was going to do. Aunt Alice took my mother's hand, comforting her like the sister she truly was, regardless of bloodline, or in this case, what century they were born in.

They were so close-and yet, so completely unobtainable.

"Daddy," I cried weakly, tears streaming down my face as I reached out my hand. It was as if I truly believed simply displaying my desire to be freed was going to liberate me from my frightening entrapment.

"It's okay, baby. You'll be back with us soon. Just hang in there." His response was bright and full of hope. However, I could sense a discrete lack of conviction in his voice. He knew as well as I did that wasn't getting out of this situation anytime soon, and if I did it was definitely going to be at the expense of someone I love.

Suddenly, my family was gone, once again swept behind the thick black barrier.

"As you can see by Renesmee's many injuries, this is far from a game. You will do what we say, when we say it or…" he paused, and I could picture the masochistic smile on his face. "…or we will dispose of her our own way—and I'm sure you understand exactly what I mean by that."

A chorus of angry snarls rang throughout my family. I wished more than anything for a beacon of hope, but I simply could not find that silver lining. Sure, I was most-likely going to go free, but at what expense, I did not know. All I knew was my family would do anything to save me. I wished that they wouldn't. I wished that they would just let me be. I was the one who got us into this situation in the first place—a pawn in the hands of Nick. And worse than my foolishness was the fact that my mother had tried to warn me. And now they were going to protect me, no matter what the cost-and there was nothing I could do to prevent it.

"What is it that you want, Aro?" my grandfather snarled. It was a wonder I even recognized his voice—the anger was so unfamiliar, so unlike the loving man I knew. But I realized that a kind voice was not the only language of love. These snarls and growls escaping from him also depicted love—a devotion to his only granddaughter.

"I suppose we now have come to that time," Aro said quietly, laughter in his voice. "You see, there was once a time when I made a very generous offer. However, that offer was not taken up on. And now, I would like to make that offer again—with Renesmee's death as a consequence of the wrong choice."

"What are you saying?" my grandmother asked, her voice weak with grief.

"I want the service of Alice, Edward, and Bella. Forever."


	23. Chapter Twenty two

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

‡

**Bella**

Our unending, unfailing, steadfast service.

As his plan unfolded completely, I felt myself retracing every vivid memory in my head-why hadn't we seen this before? The answer to this question broke me into a million pieces; we hadn't been able to decipher their scheme because we were distracted by Renesmee. And that was the brilliance of the plan-to distract us with the same tool they were using to lure us to Italy and ultimately into their coven.

First, he wanted to tear our beloved family a part-and if I were him, I would have done the same thing. We were strong and powerful, something we had proved fifteen years ago. But he was wise; he had not stopped there. It was not enough to simply tear us apart—he had to make sure we would never get back together again. And what better way to do that than forcing us to work for him—we would be bound to him forever through Chelsea's power which would force us to remain loyal, meaning that he would obtain three more talented, loyal subjects. And with a hypnotist on his side, there was no end to his power to force his coven to remain loyal-Chelsea would use her power, which would make us willing to stay, and Matthew would hypnotize us to make certain we were not strong enough to overcome the enchantment.

And Renesmee had been the key to it all—the perfect bargaining chip. He knew that we would do anything for her. So he made her weak and vulnerable. At the time, it seemed as if it had been a choice between changing her right then or waiting until she was eighteen years old. But that hadn't been the case—Aro _knew_ we were not going to change Renesmee while she was so young. He _knew_ we would take the other offer—so he kept the shield on him the entire time, making certain that Edward did not learn of his horrid plan.

And then he sent in Nick, the most brilliant key to the plan. What girl could resist his charming, debonair looks and personality—especially a girl who was hurting as felt as if he could help her? All Nick had to do was follow Aro's directions—which were probably given to him daily, just so they could be certain that Edward did not learn of them. When Edward had attacked Aro, he had been blocking out parts of his thoughts, just as Edward had told me that night.

I glanced to the ground, where I would have seen my daughter had she not been hidden by that monster. I knew I couldn't take much more this, conscious to the fact that my daughter was in pain yet being utterly helpless to stop it.

Jane stepped forward with the elegant grace of a ballerina and the ravenous eye of a lion. "Master, I think we should eat her. I am quite hungry," she snarled demonically.

"Now, now, Jane, we have to give Edward and Bella options-that's what being a good leader is about. So, what is it going to be?" Aro growled, raising his neck so we could see his entire face, pure evil hidden away under that dark hood. "Either join our ranks, or..." Suddenly, he had Nessie by the collar of her shirt, his sharp teeth against her neck. She was gasping for breath. I watched as blood dripped down her temple, a deathly, taunting image for the vampires that surrounded her.

"No!" Edward screamed as he lunged forward before he was immediately restrained by Emmett and Carlisle. "Put her down!

Aro slowly turned his head maniacally, the edges of his mouth turned up in a ruinous grin. "Are you agreeing to our contract?"

"Yes!" I cried from the depths of my soul. At the sound of this he dropped her, as if he was simply holding a disgusting inanimate object. She hit the ground with a stomach-churning thud, immediately followed by another cry of pain from both her and me.

The pain simulated a strange, yet invited feeling. It ran through my veins like the thick red blood of my childhood. It cried out to me like a siren. I felt my eyes fill with motherly-determination, a determination that was far more powerful than any other forms of this heroic quality. My body, my mind, the very soul inside of me-if need be, I would give them all to her, simply so that she may have one more minute of life. I inhaled deeply with my entire body, and screamed from the bottom of my soul, a cry from my unbeating heart.

"This is all your fault!" Anguish filled the air as the sound echoed through the meadow, widening the eyes that were now upon me. I whirled around and with force equal to the pain inside me, threw Edward to the ground.

His eyes were wide as he stayed down, too shocked to rise.

"You were the one who didn't tell her! You were the one who said everything was going to be alright!" I was screaming, pouring out all of my emotions, pretending to be a mother who had gone over the edge-and I truly had. "Damn you, Edward!"

My voice became soft, as deadly as the man who was standing over my bleeding daughter. "You did this to her. You _did_ this to her!" I used a shaking hand for emphasis, creating even more pain.

I immediately saw a flood of hurt enter my lover's eyes-those same eyes that had always held a reflection of love and adoration when I gazed into them. Now, they were not only piercing, they were weak and defeated. I wanted to take it all back, to explain to him that this had all been a part of a spontaneous plan that I had been crazy enough to attempt. But I knew couldn't do that, no matter how much I desired-this was the only way to save Renesmee. If that meant hurting the man I loved, then so be it.

At this realization, I felt like breaking down, even more than I had to this moment-I had once sworn to myself, immediately after taking Edward to the gravestone of his grandfather, that I would _never_ hurt him again. That hurt had been an accident. This hurt, this unbearable pain, was as real as could be-and after this was all over, I prayed that we would find a way to heal it.

"Bella," Aro's voice was now enchanting and kind, as if he had not just inflicted pain of my daughter. I kept my composure, digging my finger nails into my skin to prevent me from doing what my instincts were yearning me to do-destroy the monster before me.

"We need your power with us," he continued. "Leave him-leave all of them. The Volturi clan is all you need...and more."

That was the only confirmation I needed-I ran over to the other side and fell on the ground next to Nessie. I stroked her hair, feeling Aro's dark eyes upon me. And then suddenly, I turned my body and bit him on the leg, leaving no imprint but shocking him, nonetheless.

"You little..." he snarled, immediately seizing my hair.

A gust of wind blew past me, and I let out a cry of relief. I watched the blur of Edward escape through the woods, our little girl safe in his arms. His brilliant mind had recognized the opportunity I had made for him, and he had taken it without hesitation.

"After them, Demitri!" Aro hissed.

Another gust of wind and Demitri was gone, relentlessly chasing after the two loves of my life. However, I was not concerned-Edward was fast as it was and would only increase his speed due to the fact that he was protecting his precious daughter.

Still on the ground, I watched Carlisle closely, scrutinizing him for a sign of a plan. His eyes were dark and dangerous, glaring at the enemy in front of him as he mentally prepared for battle.

"Now!" he screamed, which caused my entire family to run and throw themselves into the crowd of evil vampire that surrounded me.

Mass chaos ensued. The amount of maternal strength that poured through me at that moment was unbelievable. I not only fought for my life and the lives of the family that surrounded me, I fought for justice-something that had been a long time coming to these "protectors of the law." I heard the sickening sound of flesh tearing and agonizing cries of pain.

I suddenly stopped in horror-Emmett was on the ground before me, withering in pain as Jane stood before him, a heinous smile planted on her tiny face. Throwing myself on top of my brother, I immediately created a unyielding force-field around us. I breathed a sigh of relief, when he expelled a large breath and relaxed his body, a sign that the heart-wrenching pain had ceased.

"Stop!" Carlisle suddenly ordered. At this command we were instantly at his side, where I carried my protection around my beloved family. We stared at the coven before us, their eyes gleaming with malicious thought.

Aro grinned once more. "Had enough? Face it, Carlisle, you cannot win. The Cullen family _will _succumb to our power."

His promise rung in my ear like a chorus of angry bells. And unlike every other promise I had heard myself make over the past three years-promises to myself, promises to my daughter-this one would actually hold true.

"Carlisle," I whispered without turning to him, despair filling my voice.

When Carlisle turned to me, my heart sank. Even though we had hardly fought the Volturi to this point, pure, agonizing defeat engulfed his face. He knew it was hopeless-we could never defeat a coven as strong and powerful as the Volturi. I closed my eyes, desperate to come up with another plan that would allow the rest of my family to escape just as my husband and daughter had.

Suddenly, I felt the ground at my feet begin to shake. I looked up and expelled a cry of joy-running toward the Volturi at full speed was a pack of werewolves. And not just any pack of werewolves-Jacob's pack. They plowed into the group of hooded villains who had been too distraction to see the speeding attack coming. With angry, animal-like snarls, we immediately threw ourselves back into the fight.

A thought filled my head, and suddenly it was the only thing I could concern myself with-Jane's power would defeat us. I had to distract her somehow, for I was the only one who could not be affected by her horrible ability. I found her in the chaos and pushed her down with an angry snarl. She immediately shot back up, a deadly glare in her eyes. We encircled each other, each taking a step at the exact same time as the other. Ignoring the sounds of the gruesome battle that surrounded us, we focused on each other, tuning into every single one of our impeccable senses.

"I am going to destroy you," she growled in her child-like voice, making her threat seem like one from a girl on a playground. But I knew better than to underestimate her due to her exterior-beneath that skin was a one-hundred year old woman, a woman who had training and skills far beyond my own novice techniques. I recalled the basic training I had received, right before we had prepared to attack the Volturi due to their desire to destroy Renesmee. It wasn't much, and I hadn't reviewed any of it-there simply had not been a need to do so. However, I knew it would help some. And hopefully, it would be enough.

I didn't respond. Instead, I closed my eyes, keeping my remaining senses perfectly alert in case she should attack. I recalled memories, pulling them from the back of my mind.

The memory of Edward, while I was still human, withering in pain on the ground. It had been my first encounter with the Volturi, and Edward had jumped in front of me when Jane was going to test out her power on me. The memory of the battle over Renesmee, the coven standing before us, as ready to kill as they were now. The memory of my daughter, being beaten as we stood helpless. These remembrances flooded through me as I clenched my fists together at the pain they somehow inflicted simply by recalling them. This woman who stood before me had caused too much pain in my life-and I wasn't about to allow her to cause more. I would defeat her. I _had_ to defeat her.

Gathering all of the strength I could, I attacked.

**Renesmee**

I lay in his warm arms once more, as if I had never left. The pain that jolted my body every time I simply blinked had subsided a little, but only because I was with him. He gently kissed the top of my head, treating me as if I was a fragile porcelain doll. But I wasn't fragile anymore, despite my physical injuries. I was with him once again-I was whole, ready to face the world and all of the problems it held.

As I lay here in this paradise, the sun shown down on me bright and beautiful. It was as if it knew I was finally with the person I was meant to be with. When I was first brought to this forest only a short hour ago, I had expected to be laying among the trees with someone who truly loved me-it just turned out that I was dead-wrong on who that was.

For the thousandth time, my distracted mind suddenly remembered what was happening just a few short miles away-it was so easy to get caught up in the wonderfulness of what I was currently experiencing. My family was out there somewhere, fighting because of me. And although my father assured me a dozen times before he left me with a kiss on the top of my head, I was not sure if I believed that they would be alright. I was not certain how vampires fought or if they could even be killed. I simply wanted my family back-I did not care if the Volturi were overtaken or not.

He had ordered us to stay here, but I had an undying urge to fight alongside them. Certainly a half-vampire would be able to assist in some way. And sure, I had sustained a few injuries, but it was only a few scrapes and a sprained wrist. My father had told me that I was able to suffer more physical injuries than the average human-my injuries were nothing compared to what they should have been. I was able to fight. I was _willing_ to fight. I was not simply going to sit back to let my family pay the price for my foolishness.

"I'm going to help," I told him, sitting up with a hidden wince.

"No you're not," Jake retorted sharply, yanking me back into his arms, probably with more force than he had intended. "First of all, you have no idea how to fight a vampire, and you will fail miserably. Second of all, you're hurt. And third of all, if we leave this spot, especially to go and help, your father...no, your entire family...will rip me to shreds."

I pulled away from him once more, turning to face him with unstoppable tears flowing down my cheeks. "Well what do you want me to do, Jake? Sit here and think about how my entire family and your pack are in danger? Don't you want to help too?"

"Of course I do-more than you know," he whispered as he wiped my tears away with a gentle finger. "But I'd rather help by keeping you safe-to your family, that is one of the most important jobs at hand. They didn't come all the way to Italy _and_ fight the Volturi simply to have you get hurt or worse by trying to help them. Trust me, Nessie, they've fought plenty of times before-they know what they're doing."

I fell into his arms once more, letting the tears flow freely. "Oh, Jakey, if anything happens to them, I don't know what I'll do," I sobbed into his chest.

"Nothing's going to happen; you just gotta believe me. They'll come home to you-to both of us. And then we can go home and sort everything out. You just wait, Nessie-everything is going to be alright."

I simply nodded in answer, fighting back more tears. I would not believe him until that exact moment when my family was safely back to me, when I would never willingly let them go again.

As I lay back down, this time turning to my side in an attempt to work around the pain, something in my pocket began digging into my leg. I pulled out the worn, silver ring that my father had given me. Taking Nick's present off of my finger, I hurled it into a nearby tree. Then I replaced my father's ring, placing my hand on my chest as I held it close to my heart where it belonged.

I felt a single raindrop on my arm and a distant boom of thunder, a sign from the sky that a storm was on its way.

**Bella**

The shreds of Jane lay before me, a chilling yet beautiful sight to my eyes. I winced as I remembered how only a few minutes ago she had me pinned against a tree, growling a promise to not only kill me, but to first torture me beyond belief. At the time, all I had been able to think about was Edward and Renesmee, how my death would mean that I was once again hurting them. I couldn't die. I _wouldn't_ die. But it appeared as if there was not going to be any miracles like the ones that had happened every other time I had faced death.

Just as had I lost all hope, I found myself on the ground, released from her menacing grip. With the timing of a guardian angel, Edward was before me, not only fighting Jane, but defeating her.

Now, he smiled at me, the first sign of happiness I had seen after the past few days of pure hell. And then, just as quickly as it had come, it was gone-remembrance flooded his eyes as he realized that the battle had not been won. The rest of our family was still out there, probably fighting for their lives.

Take my hand into his, once again completing the union that could never be broken, we ran back toward our beloved family. As we drew closer, it was clear they had once again separated, with Carlisle and Aro at the front of their respective sides. We joined our own side, looking each of our family members in the eyes as we lined up next to them. We were ready to fight. We were ready to kill.

"Jane is dead," Edward stated as an answer, apparently after having read Aro's mind.

I glanced at the villainess ringleader, whose expression was blank. I knew he was trying to appear as if his death had no affect on him, when in fact on the inside, he was falling apart.

"Demitri's dead as well," Edward continued. These words caused me to breathe a sigh of relief-the two most vital assets to the Volturi were dead, thanks to Edward. The future suddenly seemed bright and wonderful-maybe we could win this.

"You will pay for that, Cullen, with a slow and painful death," Aro promised with a snarl, his eyes glaring and deadly. "But first," he continued, "you will watch your wife and daughter die before you, slowly and painfully as well."

Edward growled, protectively stepping in front of me just as he used to do when I was human.

"Two of the members of your coven are dead because of you. I suggest that you surrender before your yourself wind up in a thousand pieces," Carlisle threatened, his voice calm as he spoke to a man who had once been his greatest friend, now permanently branded as his worst enemy.

"Never," Aro hissed, taking a single threatening step forward.

As the pack growled in unison, I suddenly realized who was not among us: Jacob. Even though he would be in wolf form, I would recognize him among his four fellow pack members. I thought of Nessie, praying that she was safe in Jacob's arms. I could not imagine where else Edward would have left her-he would not have come back to us unless he was certain that Renesmee was safe. Jacob was one of the only people in the world who was able to provide that safety.

When we had first called Jacob in hysteria to tell him of Renesmee's disappearance, he had not answered his phone the first few times. Finally, he had picked up with a grunted hello, and we explained what had happened. He told us he was coming over and immediately jumped into his car and sped the whole way, making it to our house in record time. When he arrived, we had already called her many times, but she had not answered her phone-in fact, it was turned off. We had been sick with worry, unsure if whether Nick had kidnapped her or if she had gone willingly. We weren't even sure if she was alive or dead. Our world was dark and lugubrious, and we yearned to take action. However, without Nessie's location, there was truly nothing we could have done except to wait and hope that she came back home to us.

That entire night, we had sat in the living room in complete silence. Every few minutes, someone would call Nessie, interrupting the quiet with a pleading voicemail. When Nessie finally answered one of Edward's repeated phone calls, we were filled with relief-at least she was alive, wherever she was. And then she told us-Italy. We knew exactly what that meant: the Volturi had been behind this whole ordeal-and our little Nessie was in grave danger.

All eleven of us, in addition to the four members of Jacob's pack, had immediately driven to the airport. Frantically, we told the woman who had been selling tickets that we were willing to pay whatever it took just so we could get a flight to Italy. But she informed us that every single seat on the plane had been booked-and we were not permitted to try to bribe someone into selling his or her ticket, for it bore the name of the passenger and identification was required before getting on board. The next flight available had been the next afternoon at two o'clock-and by the time we arrived the worst could have happened.

We had purchased the tickets anyway, just in case we could not find an alternative way. It had seemed as if it was a lost cause-the soonest we could reach Italy was in the evening the following day. And then, just as it always did at the most crucial points in my life, a miracle happened. An old man had come running up to us, out of breath and red in the face. Taken aback by our beauty, he had hesitated a moment before speaking. Then he had told us that he knew of a plane that could get twelve of us to Italy, if we were willing to pay the price, which he named.

We had instantly accepted the offer without hesitation-we would reach Italy by the morning of the next day. Edward had made arrangements for the Jacob's pack to fly in on a different plane that the man knew of-we had known that we would need all the help we would get. A few hours later we were on the plane, ready to rescue our Renesmee from the terrible situation she was in, whether she had known it or not at the time. That plane ride had been the longest six hours of my life-every second that passed left me antsy with worry. When the plane finally landed, we had immediately began running toward the Volturi mansion, making certain that the bustling city around us did not notice anything peculiar-of course, we could not care less about this little rule, but we had not wanted the Volturi placing any crime on us when we arrived.

As we had passed the forest we were currently in, we smelled them, their scent thick with evil. We had immediately run into the forest-and there we saw them, staring at us in their dark cloaks. Their eyes were as blood red as ever. We had faced them just as we were now, ready to fight our final battle.

Rain suddenly began to fall around us as the thunder boomed in the distance.

**Renesmee**

He fell asleep under the canopy of tree leaves we had made in order to escape the rain. I slowly and gently pulled myself out of his arms, running as fast as I could manage underneath the trickling trees. Pain shot through my body, but I ignored it and kept running, faster and faster, until I could no longer distinguish the pain from my body from the pain in my heart.

**Bella**

Aro, Caius, Marcus, Alec, Nick, Matthew. Joining only moments ago, Chelsea, Felix, and two hooded strangers.

Carlisle, Esme, Emmett, Rosalie, Alice, Jasper, five werewolves, Edward, myself...

And Renesmee.

**Renesmee**

I finally reached them, out of breath and ready to collapse from the pain that burned through my veins. As I approached, they simply stared at me, as if they thought I was an illusion before them.

"Ah, Renesmee, you are back," Aro greeted wickedly, his expression surprised but pleased.

I did not say anything-I simply took my place in line with my family, where I belonged. Someone behind me pulled me backwards by my arm, causing me to wince in pain. "What are you doing here?" It was Uncle Emmett, his whisper sharp and angry in my ear.

"I..." I began, but stopped as my entire family formed a protective circle around me, my grandfather front and center with my parents on either side of him.

"You think you can protect her?" Aro screamed, his voice echoing through the forest. "She willingly came back, the foolish girl! I suppose she did us a favor-with our tracker gone, her return has saved us the trouble of _hunting_ her down later." His emphasis of the word 'hunting' sent chills down my spine-I really was in danger here. But it did not faze me; I had a plan that my heart, mind, and soul were screaming about, convincing me that I would succeed. I had no choice-I had to try.

I dropped to the ground and before my family realized what I was doing, was on the other side of the circle, face to face with the very people I had just escaped from. Before I even had time to blink, I was in Alec's tight grasp. I felt immense pressure on my lungs, and the world began to spin. My family's frantic shouting filled my ears, but none of them dared to move for fear that doing so would mean my instant death by the hands of this evil creature.

I closed my eyes, raised my hand, and pressed the ring on my finger to Alec's cold, white skin.

**Bella**

The cry of pain that came from Alec was absolutely terrifying-the type of horrible sound that echoed in the mind and the soul for a long time afterward.

And then he was on the ground, unmoving. I saw Renesmee's eyes light up in recognition that he was dead. She moved on to the next one, Chelsea, who screamed yet another blood-curdling scream before dropping to the ground as well.

Without even having to think, my entire family ran forward and restrained one of the six remaining vampires before they could use their lightening fast reflexes to hurt Nessie. The werewolves surrounded the scene, ready to attack in case one of the Volturi should attempt to escape.

"Nessie, my darling, I believe this woman desires to see your ring," Edward proclaimed with a cackle as he restrained one of the strangers who had showed up to help Aro. It was at that moment when I realized who was underneath the black cloak-one of the wives of either Aro or Caius. Both of them had shown up to help their husbands, unaware at the time that doing so would mean their death. And this was good for us-it meant that we could take care of them now, before they showed up seeking revenge for killing their beloved coven.

Nessie hesitated for a moment as she realized that the person before her was not only a someone whom she had never seen partake in the evil of the group, but also a woman. However, at Edward's slight nod, she closed her eyes and lightly tapped the woman who was now screaming for redemption with pleading promises. She then repeated the action on the other, her arms bound tightly behind her back by Alice.

Nessie then moved down the line to her next victim-Marcus, who was being restrained by both Esme and Rosalie. "Please, dear child. I will give you whatever you wish for. Just please have mercy on me." Renesmee did not even bother to respond before digging the silver weapon into his exposed arm.

Next came Felix, who tried fighting against Emmett's iron grip, but alas it was to no avail. In seconds he was in a heap with his friends.

As Nessie stood before Nick, restrained by Jasper, she hesitated for a moment. At first I believed it was because she was not able to go through with the vicious act of killing the boy who had once been her friend. However, as Nessie parted her lips to speak, I realized her hesitation was for a whole other purpose.

"You lied to me, you betrayed me, you used me, and you attempted to hurt my family." Her voice was quiet and well-contained, although certainly not lacking in emotion. Nick simply glared at her, his eyes as blood-red and deadly as ever.

"To tell you the truth, I didn't even like you that much," he snarled viciously.

With a loud outcry she dug the ring into the center of his lips, an act that forever silenced him and his vicious lies. "I didn't like you that much either," she snapped as Jasper released the body.

We all turned to Aro, who was harnessed by the strong arms of Carlisle. I expected Nessie to assert herself forward and kill him this very second, just as she had done with the others. Instead, she turned to her father and pulled the ring off her finger, extending it out to him. He hesitated, fearful that touching it would mean the same fate as the other vampires.

"Daddy, you've touched my ring before-you were the one who gave it to me. It only works on evil vampires-I don't know how it distinguishes between the two, but it won't hurt you. You have to trust me."

Those five familiar little words at the end, that phrase that he himself had uttered many times before, caused Edward to reach out a steady hand and take the offering from his daughter.

He walked forward at a slow pace, eyeing his prey. "How did I not hear Nick thinking about you and this plan on that night when I attacked him outside my home? How did he hide them from me?"

I examined this scene questioningly-Aro was not going to answer this. He was standing before death's door; what incentive was there to answer his future-murderer's question? However, to my utter surprise, he grinned before explaining to us the final part of his plan. "As I have said before, I could not figure out how to work around your mind reading for some time. How was I going to hide Nicholas' thoughts? Of course, I hid my own by the power of Matthew on that fateful night. So I began thinking: could I use Matthew for Nicholas as well?"

"But there was no shield around him.."

"Ah, my young friend, no there was not. That is because I did not use Matthew's shield. I used his _hypnotism_. Nick was avoiding you at all costs, simply so you would not discover that he too was vampire. The problem arose when I was unsure if you would read Renesmee's mind, which would then give Nick away-not the fact that he was working for us, but that he too yearned for blood swimming through the hearts that echoed around us.

The fact that you could read your daughter's mind at any moment gave us limited time-we had to get Renesmee to befriend Nick in such a passionate way that she would follow him anywhere, even half way around the world. And as you can clearly see, we did just that."

"You still haven't answered my question..."

"I am getting to that at this very moment. You see, when the time finally came for Renesmee to ask her questions, we sent Nick in. I suppose your daughter has not had the chance to tell you-Nick's power is to enter the minds of those that surround him and convince them to do what he says. Granted, he cannot read those minds like you and I, but it is a useful power nonetheless. Have you wondered why Renesmee suddenly interrogated you without warning? It was due to the fact that her precious Nicholas was inside her mind, telling her exactly what to say.

You, of course, did not answer her. Thus, she felt hopeless and angry-just as we planned. That's when we Nick came in once more, this time to be caught by you. And he was, but he was not thinking of his clan back in Italy, the one that he was working for with no knowledge of what the actual plan was. You see, my dear Cullen's, he was under hypnosis-when he was around you, he would immediately forget who he was working for. When he was away from you, he would remember once more. It was as simple as that.

But, Edward, now that I have answered your question, I have one of my own: what will killing me solve? You will not have power-your overbearing father will certainly take it away from you in order to keep for himself. If you let me live, you will work beside me. We will once again begin the greatest coven on earth."

A moment of silence passed, a few seconds of seeming contemplation. "Burn in hell," Edward suddenly snarled as he pushed the deadly ring into Aro's neck.

And with that, it was over. They were all dead-every single one of them. Immediately, we began ripping apart their bodies into thousands of tiny pieces, making certain that they were as dead as could be.

When we were finished, I looked away from the shreds that were now blowing in the wind, and was instantly staring at Nessie's beautiful face. She ran into my arms and I hugged her a tightly as possible without hurting her. I kissed the top of her beautiful head as I sobbed a vampire's cry.

"Don't ever leave me again," I whispered into her ear.

"I won't, Mommy. I promise," she replied sincerely, hot tears rolling down her cheeks.

Then she gently pulled away from me, turning so that she could embrace her father. "Daddy, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean for all of this to happen. I..."

He silenced her with a finger to her lips, gently pressing his smooth lips to her forehead. "Hush, darling. We will sort everything out when we get home."

Nessie nodded before walking over to hug her aunts, uncles, and grandparents. I heard her whisper her apologies to each of them, which they immediately dismissed in the same manner as Edward had. After all, this ordeal truly not been her fault-we were as much to blame as she was. With a slight chuckle, we watched as she bravely walked forward to pet the members of the werewolf pack that had fought loyally beside us for the second time, giving each a kiss on their soft fur.

I tore my gaze from this scene and glanced at Edward, expecting him to give me an angry glare. After all, I had hurt him in the worst way possible, even if it was simply a distraction so my daughter could escape. I knew it might not be as easy as an apology for him to forgive me. However, just as he always did, he surprised me by leaning over and giving me a small kiss, silently conveying to me that everything was alright. Joy filled me at this small but powerful action.

After Renesmee was finished, she came back toward Edward and me, taking one hand into each of hers. "Let's go home," she said as she expelled an exhausted sigh-and that is exactly what we did.


	24. Chapter Twenty three

**Chapter Twenty-Three**

‡

**Renesmee**

"No, there are not any garlic cloves, coffins, or wooden stakes," Uncle Jasper answered with an exuberated sigh, although there was a small smile on his face.

We were all sitting in the living room at my grandparent's house, enjoying one another's company as I asked question after question. The fire that Aunt Rosalie had lit was warm against my skin, a nice substitute for Jacob-although he was sitting right near me, we did not deem it appropriate for me to be in his arms at this time. But I didn't care; as long as I was near him, I was alright. As long as I was near _all_ of them, I was alright.

I turned to Jacob, my eyes alit with teasing. "And what about you-do you howl at the moon?"

He rolled his eyes, giving me a playful push. "What else do you want to know? How about you ask another vampire question? I'm sick of these cliché stereotypes about werewolves."

I thought for a moment, trying to recall the last remaining questions from my long mental list. And then I realized that there was one question that I still had yet to ask-the one that should have been the most obvious, but had not been brought up. I knew it there was a subconscious reason for this-I did not want to know the answer to this question. But I had to ask. I had to know.

"What do you eat?" I asked quietly, without hesitation. "I mean...I know what you eat. It's obvious-and besides, Aro told me. I...I don't want you to think I have a problem with it...well, I mean, I do have a problem with it. But I decided when I was Italy that it didn't matter-I love you no matter what. And I..."

"Nessie," my father interrupted sternly.

I gulped. "Yes?"

"We hadn't realized that you are such an animal activist," Aunt Alice responded as her brilliant eyes twinkled.

I immediately let out the breath that I had been holding in subconsciously. Animals-they ate animals. Of course Aro had lied to me; he had wanted my family to appear as cruel as possible, so that I would desire to be with him instead.

Uncle Emmett chuckled as he tossed a pillow at me. "Ness, did you think we ate people? I thought you knew us better than that!"

I laughed along with everyone else, letting the happiness of the atmosphere sink in. Sure, life wasn't perfect, but it was as close as possible-and for that I was extremely grateful. Now that everything had been exposed, the world was bright again-there was nothing holding us back from being the amazing family that we had always longed to be.

I looked down with a smile at the ring on my finger-the reason for this togetherness. I still did not know what had made me realize that the ring held powers to destroy evil. After all, the only time I had ever even heard its history was when Nick was relaying it to me. And even then he had made it seem as if it was simply a scam of the brilliant businessmen of the Civil War era. But for some reason, while I had lay on the ground with Jake, something inside me kept saying that there was something more to it, something I was not seeing. And I had went with that feeling, pushing aside all thoughts of reason-it simply did not make sense that a ring would be able to posses such powers. But then again, I had thought, it did not make sense that vampires existed in the world that portrayed them as strictly creatures of our imaginations.

When I had questioned my father about the ring today, along with dozens of other questions, he told me that he had not known the powers the legends expressed were truly inside of it. Sure, he had given it to me for protection-but in his mind, the chance of it actually being genuine was one-in-a-million. While with Jacob in the woods, right after I had thrown Nick's ring against the tree, I had begun wondering why had he bought me a seemingly expensive gift if it had all been a trick. My mind had been spinning, trying to come up with a reason for that peculiar action. And then it had hit me-the ring my father had given me.

Still remaining in Jake's safe arms as if nothing was wrong, I had replayed the legend that Nick had told me in the cafeteria over and over in my mind-the ring was _supposed_ to destroy vampires. But then, I had thought with a painful realization, it hadn't had any effect on the members of my family. But they were not evil. Nick, Aro, and the rest of them were. Which was why none of them had _ever_ touched my ring.

Looking back on it, this piece of information would have made anyone roll his or her eyes-how did I know for sure that Aro and his followers, especially Nick, had never touched my ring? After all, this wrong fact could have lead to my death. However, vivid memories of the seemingly insignificant times when Nick had gone out of his way to make certain that he did not touch the ring upon the finger of my right hand came back to me-for example, when he had me wear gloves while going on his motorcycle, how he had always stayed on my left side while we were walking or before taking my hand, and, of course, the most prevalent: when he had _me_ take off the band so he could replace it with one of his own.

But Nick had had a deadly folly: not taking the ring away from me altogether. They had never expected that I would figure out it's simple yet brilliant power.

Turning the ring around on my finger, I gazed around the room at my merry family. I still could not believe that I was now sincerely a part of everything that made them who they truly were. The secret had turned out to be bigger than I could have ever expected, which pleased me-I had known to the very bottom of my soul that the knowledge I sought after was great and life-changing. And now everything was known, unburied and able to be shared. With this boundary broken between my family members and myself, we were stronger. Even if we would be unlucky enough to have yet another threatened coven try to tear us apart, we were all confident that we could overcome it. We _would_ overcome it.

As if on cue, a sharp knock sounded at the door. My grandfather stridently walked over to answer it as we looked around at each other, unsure of who would be calling on a house full of vampires in the middle of the afternoon.

A strange man and two women suddenly pushed their way through the door, and my grandfather did not stop them. They held the same traits as my family in addition to blood-red eyes which by themselves told a tale of countless deaths.

"You killed them!" one of the women screamed wildly. Her expression was furious and as she waved her arms around passionately.

Before I had even seen them move, my family was on their feet. Jacob protectively stood in front of me as a small growl escaped his throat.

"Everything is fine, Jacob," my grandfather said calmly, not taking his eyes off the trio before us. "You remember Zafrina, Kachiri, and Senna of the Amazon coven. They fought next to us when Renesmee was young."

Even though he had not elucidated, I knew exactly to what he was referring. My family had explained this event to me, with vivid details which I recalled as if I had been there myself-which I had, in a sense. To myself, I regarded this incident as "A," the first time the Volturi had come into my life. "B" was the time they hypnotized me. And "C" referred to this past encounter in Italy. It pleased me to know that there would never be a "D."

The wild woman should have been absolutely terrifying to me. However, she seemed somewhat familiar. Her voice, although loud and terrifying, was soothing to my ears, as if I was hearing the voice of an old friend. When her livid, passionate eyes met mine, I immediately looked away, unsure if the feeling of familiarity was a good thing-Aro had been subconsciously recognizable to me as well.

The woman let out a vicious growl, which caused my father to take a offensive step forward. My grandfather immediately extended out his hand, silently conveying for him to stay where he was.

"Zafrina, do not overreact," the other woman, Senna, ordered firmly.

Kachiri was the next to speak. We all watched closely as he took one small, unaggressive step forward. "She's right. Give them a chance to explain, unless you want to be similar to that monster Volturi clan."

"What is there to explain?" she screamed. "They loathed them for what they had done-hypnotizing _that girl_." Her angry regarding of me made me cower behind Jacob.

"And then they killed them-no brutally slaughtered them!" she continued with assertiveness. "I knew you did not like them-my coven did not either. But you should not have killed them. Our world has lost its leaders, and your personal issues with them have no effect on the law. You will pay for what you have done-with your lives."

A chorus of angry growls broke lose among those who formed a protective boundary around me. I glanced at Jacob, my eyes wide with confusion. He gave me a helpless, fearful look in return, not bothering to hid the fact that we were in trouble...yet again. And this time, there did not appear to be anything that I could do about it. This woman, this vampire, was not evil as far as I could tell. She simply believe that we had killed the leaders of the vampire world. What she did not realize was that she was wrong-sure, they were dead, but they were _not_ leaders to mourn over.

"Zafrina, my dear friend," Carlisle began, his voice calm as if our family had not just been threatened by death once more. "If you would allow us to explain, I am certain that we will be able to clear this whole situation up.

When they had come before, to hypnotize my dear granddaughter, they had a plan to tear apart my family. We learned of this just yesterday, while we had been in Italy. You see, Zafrina, Senna, and Kachiri, what you do not know is that they lured my granddaughter to Italy with the intent of forcing my son Edward and my daughters Alice and Bella into unending service. And Renesmee had been the key to the entire plan. We had to kill them; it was the only way to save our family."

There-the truth had been revealed. Hearing it spoken out loud calmed my fears. It was believable. It was the truth. They simply _had_ to accept what my grandfather had told them.

However, I knew the moment Zafrina's eyes grew angry once more, she had not believed us.

"I'm sorry, my friends, but the story you have told me is unfathomable." Her voice was now soft and mournful, telling us that we were going to receive the punishment that she had forewarned. "I may have disliked the Volturi and their practices, but I know that they would not have been capable of something such as that. Many covens have come to me, after hearing the news of their deaths, and asked me to take care of the situation. Of course, you will be fairly judged. However, it does not seem likely that you will be acquitted of your evil deeds. You're going to have to come with us."

"No!" I suddenly found myself screaming. I broke past a surprised Jacob and stopped right in front of Zafrina. Her eyes instantly lit up with recognition as she looked into my eyes.

"Renesmee. You have grown since the last time I saw you," she stated softly.

I looked back at her with a determination to rescue my family yet again. And I knew exactly how to do it-only this time, there would be no casualties.

Inhaling deeply, I placed my hands on Zafrina's head, as if it were the most natural act in the world. And then I expelled every memory I had of what my grandfather had attempted to explain moments before. Nick luring me to Italy. Aro speaking to me in his calm and beautiful manner. My family coming to my rescue.

As the story came to a close, I felt addition visions come forth. Although they had the appearance of memories, but were not recognizable to me. As I watched them in my own mind, I realized what was happening—my power was helping me to recall many of the lost events of my childhood. Joy filled me at the same pace that they poured into my mind. My mother and father taking me to a forest to hunt. Our little cottage in Forks. The sun shining down around me as my parents' skin sparkled like diamonds.

Memories of times of fear were next. Aro and his followers surrounding my family and the covens that had come to fight alongside them. Zafrina, the woman who had been my friend so long ago, standing in defense of me as well. Caius' evil eyes.

Memories of right before I was forced to forget. Jake in dog form standing next to me in the same protective manner he had been just a few moments ago. A man with dark black hair, whom I recognized to be Matthew, sitting me down in a chair as he told me that we were going to play a game—right before hypnotizing me.

The words he had quietly whispered to me were swimming in my head.

"You will forget everything you have ever known. You will not remember anyone you have ever met before, even your family members. You will be unable to ask, unable to seek answers.

Until you hear a voice inside your head, prompting you to finally act on what you've longed to do."

And then I felt Zafrina pull away, giving me a small smile that expressed that she did not want to invade my private memories anymore. As I walked back to the people I loved, they were grinning; after all of these years, I finally remembered.

"My dear friends," Zafrina said to us all with a voice that was filled with regret. "I am deeply sorry for the misunderstanding. I was simply seeking justice for their deaths. I now see that I had been wrong."

I felt Jacob's hand at the small of my back, silently congratulating me for a job well done. I watched intently as Carlisle, the rightful preceding ruler due to his involvement with the Volturi long ago, proclaimed Zafrina and her coven as the new leaders. Of course, he told her that the new system would include a number of check-and-balances, to make certain that the leaders did not gain as much power as the Volturi had.

I looked around the room at my family, each member in his or her respective partner's arms. And then I felt Jacob's warm skin at the tips of the fingers on my left hand. He took it into his, but it was not in order to avoid the deadly weapon that remained on my right.

Instead, I felt him slid a ring of his own onto my finger—a silent proposal.


	25. Chapter Twenty four

**Chapter**

**Twenty-Four**

‡

**Bella**

Nervous did not even begin to describe my Renesmee. She was practically shaking with her brown eyes wide with fear and anticipation—and it was only the night before. I could not even begin to imagine how she was going to be the following day.

"Mom, do...do you think that this is a good idea? I mean, I know we've...we've been engaged for five months now, and it's...and it's a little late to start regretting the decision, but do you..."

"Nessie," I interrupted firmly before I reached across the kitchen table and took her hands into my own. "Do you love him?"

She nodded, slowly closing her eyes. "Very much so," she replied softly, the first full sentence that she had formed all evening.

"Then it's a _wonderful_ idea."

Opening her eyes to reveal trust and pure joy, she smiled at me in an appreciative manner. "Do you still remember every minute of your wedding?"

I nodded and closed my eyes in the same manner that she had. I pictured the beautiful day, when all of my family and friends had gathered in the Cullen's beautifully decorated mansion. However, the most vivid memory I had was Edward, standing at the bottom of the stair case, never looking more wonderful to my eyes. It was at that moment that I had known he was going to be mine forever, in the most literal sense of the word possible. And Renesmee was going to have that exact same experience.

I thought back to when Jacob had asked Edward and me for Renesmee's hand in marriage and when he had proposed to her—both of which happened to fall on the same day.

Life was beautiful again—our angel was upstairs in her own bed, where she belonged. Jacob, who had not left her side since they were reunited after the murder of the Volturi earlier that afternoon, came into the living room and collapsed on the couch opposite of Edward and me.

"Nessie's asleep…finally," Jacob told us with a sigh. "It's been a long day."

"Yes, yes it has been," I agreed. I turned to give Edward a small smile-however, his expression was hard and angry as he stared straight ahead.

"Edward, what's wrong?" I asked him, concerned. How could he be angry at a time like this? We were all home—safe and happy. There was no reason that I could see for this reaction—but then again, maybe it wasn't something that I could _se_e. Maybe it was something he could _hear_.

Now noticing Edward's infuriated domineer, Jacob quickly turned to him. "I…I…Edward, listen, it's just an idea," he stammered, his face instantly flushing. "I just thought…"

"You just thought you could take her away from us. We finally get her back, and you want to take her from us," Edward said softly, his voice as angry as his expression.

I watched as Jacob, instead of growing angry as well, slowly lowered his head so he was looking at the ground. Apparently whatever they were talking about, Jacob needed to be in a submissive position in order to show Edward that he was not attacking him in any way. "No, I don't want to take her from you. It wouldn't be taking her from you," he refuted softly.

"She's too young," Edward growled.

"But she's older mentally and emotionally. She's a half breed, remember?"

He ignored this refutation and moved on to his next point. "This is terrible timing. She's just been told."

"But I've learned over the years that a person can't wait—you have to take initiative at that moment. Because you never know when someone or something is going to take it all away."

There was silence for a moment as we all contemplated the situation—although, I still had yet to know what it was. And then I understood.

Jacob wanted to propose to Nessie.

They both turned to me as I gasped and threw my arms around Jacob. "Oh, Jake you want to marry her? That's wonderful!"

As I pulled away, Jacob was smiling as he gave Edward a pleading look. I turned to Edward, mirroring Jacob's expression. I understood why Edward was upset—Nessie had just been told. However, I also understood Jacob's perspective—he simply did not want to lose her again; he loved her more than anything in this world and wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. And in my opinion, that sort of love took precedence over the fatherly devotion of Nessie's father. We waited for Edward, the other person whose blessing needed to be given before respectful Jacob would propose to our daughter.

Edward's eyes grew soft as he sighed deeply. "Well, she still has to say yes."

"I'm glad I'm doing this," Nessie explained, bringing me back to a realty that I was thrilled to be experiencing. "It's scary, but it's a thrilling kind of scary. Like when Daddy taught me how to ride a bike. Or when we moved to Washington. Or when I went to Italy with..." She instantly cut off from the pain of the memory that was now at the forefront of both of our minds.

Fulfilling my position in her life as her mother, I placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. "Your aunts and grandmother should be here soon."

She smiled at this. "When do I get to see Jacob?"

"Not until two thirty tomorrow."

I watched as her eyes filled with sadness at the thought of not being with Jacob for most of the day. Since their engagement, they had been absolutely inseparable. They spent the entire day together, only parting at night at the firm request of Edward. However, since Nessie could not sleep in his arms-which I was convinced would have been completely innocent, but I did not want to go against Edward-Jacob had chosen to sleep down the hall in the guest room.

"We're here!" I heard Alice shout from the front door.

"We're in the kitchen!" I called back.

"We know," Rosalie stated as she, Alice, and Esme walked into the kitchen. "We can smell you all the way from the front door. You smell like dog."

"_Rose, Nessie is right here_," I said through gritted teeth. I could not believe Rosalie would have the audacity to offend her own niece the night before her wedding.

I felt Renesmee's hand touch my arm, calming me. "It's okay, Mom," she said quietly. "I know you guys hate Jake's smell. That is why I am glad that it never worked out for me to become one of you—if it is as bad as you say it is, I don't think this marriage would have worked out."

"I'm certain you would have barred it. After all, this is true love," Rosalie responded, her voice sweet and genuine.

Renesmee smiled at Rosalie, standing up to give all three of her loving family members a kiss and a hug.

"So, is the house ready for tomorrow?" I asked Alice, who of course was the planner of the entire event.

Alice laughed softly with twinkling golden eyes. "Do you think I would be here if it wasn't? It's absolutely perfect."

"You didn't go too overboard, did you Aunt Alice?" Renesmee asked with concern in her voice.

I watched as Alice's eyes turned playfully accusing as she stared directly at me. "You have been influencing her, haven't you, Bella? You have been telling her that she shouldn't want a fantastic wedding."

"Alice!" I laughed, shooting my hands up in surrender. "I would _never_ do that!"

She gave me a doubtful look, and turned her body to face Nessie so that I was excluded. "Renesmee Cullen, you deserve the best. Don't let your mother tell you differently."

"Aunt Alice, she hasn't said a word," Renesmee defended sweetly, holding up a hand in promise.

"Very well," Alice stated, convinced. "Now, no more talking about the house. You will all see it tomorrow."

"Hopefully it doesn't snow too much," Esme said in a worried manner.

"It's okay if it does, Grandma. I love snow. And besides, it's Alaska—we can't expect eighty degree weather."

We all smiled at this. It was true—we were back in Alaska, where the weather of this season was completely unpredictable. Originally, we had wanted the wedding to be at Carlisle and Esme's house, just as mine was. It would not have been the same house, of course, but it would have been nice to start a tradition of holding the Cullen family weddings in the Cullen family house. However, Rosalie, with all her objectivism, actually came up with a valid point: there might be unwanted attention drawn to a wedding that big and grand. And with that unwanted attention came meddlesome people discovering that the Cullen's were back, and they hadn't aged a bit.

So, we had decided to hold the wedding in Alaska. It was to be small, but grand-Edward had an entire hall built for the occasion, complete with magnificent marble staircases and stunning gold chandeliers.

"I'm going to call Jakey..." Renesmee informed us as she picked up her cell phone.

"No!" we all shouted at the same time, startling her.

Giving us an annoyed look, she set her phone back down. "You won't even let me call him?" she whined in a manner that was so unlike her.

Esme shook her head, causing Renesmee to scowl. "The boys are under explicit instructions to do the same. Neither of you are to see _or_ speak to each other until two thirty tomorrow afternoon."

"But..."

"No buts, Renesmee Cullen," Rosalie stated with a giggle. "Trust us, we've been married for...ninety years, give or take. We know how excited your man will get if you wait to speak with him."

"Fine," Nessie replied with an exasperated sigh.

She then looked up at us with anticipating eyes, the bronze hair of her father's falling in front of her face. With a pang of sadness, I realized for the fifth time that evening that she was no longer my little girl—she was getting married tomorrow. She was going to have a husband and kids of her own. She was going to raise them and make mistakes with them, just as I had. But she was going to be happy—and I suppose that's all a mother truly wants for her child.

The hours passed quickly as we lay in the living room, recalling memories—until Nessie finally drifted off to be with Jacob in her dreams.

**Renesmee**

"You look beautiful, darling," my father said as he kissed my forehead. We were standing in the foyer of the building that he had built. Actually, we were not only standing, we were waiting-waiting for me to marry the love of my life. It sounded so odd-only last week I was in high school. But I knew with all of my heart that this was where I was meant to be.

"Thank you, Daddy," I responded softy. He pushed a strand of my hair out of my face and pulled me close to him. "Dad?" I mumbled over his shoulder.

He pulled away and looked at me with his sparkling golden eyes. "Yes, Nessie?"

I paused for a moment, unsure of why I had said his name. I supposed it was simply a subconscious action—I was about to do one of the hardest things I had ever had to do, and my father was at my side, as always. "I love you," I finally said.

He smiled at me, with his eyes filled with distress as he contemplated the hundreds of thoughts that were probably swarming through his head at this moment. "I love you too," he replied with a small sob, something that was unfamiliar to his controlled, firm voice.

Smiling back, I extended my arm. "Ready?"

He shook his head solemnly, but complied anyway. "No, but I'll do it for you."

As we walked down the aisle, I forgot to take note of the beautiful building that my father had had made just for me. I forgot to look at the elaborate decorations my aunt had designed herself. I forgot to look at the faces of the people sitting in chairs watching me closely and admiring me.

All I could look at was the beautiful sight that awaited me at the end of the aisle.

My eternity.

**Bella**

"And do you, Renesmee, take Jacob to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"

"I do."

**Renesmee**

Night was beginning to fall as we lay on the bed in the small cottage that my parents had built for Jacob and I to serve as our first home. I turned to see his anticipating smile, the one that I had known would begin to fill his face as soon as it turned dark.

"I love you, Renesmee Black."

"I love you, Jacob Black."

And that had never been a lie.


End file.
